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Are Electric Scooters Legal?

By Susan McGuire posted 04-25-2021 04:09 PM

  

Can you legally ride an electric scooter on city streets and other public places? Well, it depends on the city or country you reside in. 

However, as people are today encouraged to avoid public transport in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, most governments across the world are already making plans to allow rental e-scooters on public roads and streets. 

For instance, Great Britain has hinted that e-scooters will become legal on public roads as of 4th of July 2021.

The Growing Popularity of Electric Scooters

Electric scooters are basically two-wheeled scooters run by a small electric motor. The scooters have also grown quite popular today. 

There are even scooter-sharing schemes in over 100 cities across the world, including Paris, San Francisco, and Copenhagen. 

In these cities, a person can hire an e-scooter using a smartphone app just like the way city bicycle hire schemes work.

Electric Scooters in Ireland

In recent years, electric scooters have become quite common in most parts of Ireland. These simple eco-friendly scooters are seen by many as a cost-effective means of traveling in urban areas. They also provide a cheaper means of travel compared to public transport. 

Electric scooters are also more environmentally friendly than fossil fuel-operated vehicles. They not only help in reducing carbon emission but also reduce the costs of parking vehicles in cities and urban centers.

However, due to safety concerns given the fast speed of electric scooters, the Irish road safety authority made it illegal to ride scooters along bike lanes. The Dublin city council has even recommended an outright ban of electric scooters on bike lanes and other public roads.

At the moment, the legal position on the use of electric scooters on footpaths is still unclear. On the brighter side, the government has, fortunately, accepted that there’s a need for new legislation regarding the use of scooters in public places.

The Irish Law on Electric Scooters

So, are electric scooters legal in Ireland? Their use in Ireland is governed by the Road Traffic Act 1961. 

According to this Act, the definition of a Mechanically Propelled Vehicle (MPV) includes vehicles that are powered by electrical means. This means that a scooter can only be classified as an MPV if it’s proven that it can be moved from a stationary position by the power of the motor alone.

The Act also states in Section 22 that all MPVs are subject to rules regarding license, insurance, tax, and other safety considerations such as the rider wearing a helmet when using the scooter. Except for motorized wheelchairs, all MPVs are prohibited from bike lanes and footpaths. They can only be used on roads. 

An electric scooter, on the other hand, requires initial manual propulsion by foot pedaling before operating the motor. 

The scooter should not, therefore, be considered as an MPV and is consequently not covered by the Act. This lack of clarity on the law has made it difficult to exactly define when and where electric scooters can be used or where they are prohibited. 

This is also why you may sometimes see the law enforcement turning a blind eye to all people riding electric scooters in some Irish towns and cities.

Addressing the Need for New Legislation

In recognition of the need to have proper legislation on the use of electric scooters, the Irish government recently published a bill called the Road Traffic Amendment Personal Light Electric Vehicles Bill 2021. 

The bill is expected to be debated over in the coming months before it becomes law.

Conclusion

As electric scooters become more popular in Ireland it raises the need for legislation that gives clarity on the legal use of e-scooters in public places. 

The new bill is quite welcome and hopefully, once it’s passed, Ireland will join other countries in the EU that have made it legal to use electric scooters on roads and other public places without the need for tax, licensing, and insurance.

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