Paris bans rental electric scooters after referendum

The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, has called a referendum – which was held last Sunday – to vote for or against electric scooters for rent, because of the concern raised by the increasing number of people injured or killed involved in accidents with these means of transport.

Some people, in fact, ride scooters without respecting the road code, going up and down from the sidewalks, against the traffic flow, sometimes loading many persons on the same vehicle and without a helmet, dodging pedestrians and other vehicles, and arriving at a speed of 27 kilometers per hour. Furthermore, also 12 year old children can ride them legally.

The Parisians voted to ban the rental of electric scooters in the city (private vehicles can still circulate), with about 90% of the vote against the rental. But less than 8% of those with voting rights went to the polls, despite rental companies trying in various ways to push the younger ones – the main customers of their service – to vote.