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PARIS, May 4 – France will ban electric scooters from pavements in September, the transport minister said in a reaction against the rise of the suburban gadget invading pedestrian areas.
It is estimated that 15,000 scooters operated by several companies have flooded the French capital since their inception last year, a number that is expected to reach 40,000 by the end of the year.
Elisabeth Borne told the The Parisian Every day, in remarks published Saturday, people traveling by electric scooter, monowheel, personal carrier or hoverboard on the sidewalk would be fined 135 euros from September.
Instead, they will have to use the street or dedicated bike paths, "so that pedestrians are no longer stuck against the walls," said the minister.
The development of very popular people transport vehicles "is done very quickly and in a somewhat anarchic way," said Borne.
Riders will still be allowed to push them on the sidewalk as long as the engine is off.
Scooter rental services, provided by companies like Lime and Bird (based in the US) and, more recently, by American giant Uber, have proved extremely popular in many cities.
The French decision follows Peru's decision to ban motorized scooters from sidewalks and pedestrian zones starting this week.
Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo had already announced last month measures to protect pedestrians from e-scooters, "especially elderly people and children".
She said that parking in such a way as to obstruct traffic or pedestrians would be worth a fine of 35 euros – but the Paris city council is committed to providing parking for 2,500 scooters.
The Berlin City Hall has also set new strict rules for electric scooters, while Barcelona, the hotspot for Spanish tourism, has totally banned scooter hire.
More than 1,500 people have been treated in the United States for injuries caused by the use of battery-powered electric scooters since the start of craze for the end of 2017, according to a Consumer Reports survey conducted in February. – AFP
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