Urgent action needed to over legal use of e-scooters, says Warwickshire police and crime commissioner
WARWICKSHIRE’S police and crime commissioner, Philip Seccombe, has written to the Department for Transport urging the government to put the safety of all road users at the centre of any changes to legislation on the use of e-scooters.
In the letter, Mr Seccombe urged the government to implement legislation that ensures e-scooters are only driven in a careful and controlled manner, with police given sufficient powers to enforce their safe use.
Last week Labour MP Jessica Morden introduced the E-scooters (Review and Awareness) Bill and said the dangerous and antisocial use of e-scooters is “a source of great anxiety” for many of her constituents in Newport East in South Wales.
She added: “The landscape on our roads has changed dramatically over recent years. The use of e-scooters has exploded, and it was estimated last year that e-scooter ownership is now close to one million in England alone. But legislation has just not kept up with this trend – our legislation is years behind other countries.
“The Bill is about asking the government to address this quickly – and I know there have been positive moves about this – and also, as we approach Christmas, when many people may be tempted to buy them as presents, to remind potential buyers of the law.
“It is fair to say from the outset that there clearly is a place for e-scooters in the transport mix – they can play a really positive role in increasing transport choice while reducing pollution and congestion, particularly important too for young people with lower spending power and car ownership.”
She continued: “I’m introducing this Bill to highlight an issue of much concern to many constituents in Newport East, who frequently raise with me the antisocial use and sometimes dangerous use of e-scooters, and, in fact, e-bikes as well.”
Mr Seccombe’s letter asked the government to also commit to reviewing the technical standards of e-scooters, in particular the power, weight and speed at which they are permitted to run – and to ban the sale of unregulated e-scooters.
Currently, e-scooters are classed as motor vehicles under the Road Traffic Act 1988, which means riders need a licence and insurance. But, it is not currently possible to insure privately owned e-scooters, so it is illegal to use them in public spaces.
Mr Seccombe said: “Urgent action needs to be taken to introduce guidance backed by enforceable legislation that will be embraced by all, to give us the greatest chance that e-scooters are used properly, safely and in the right place.”
