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On mainland Europe speed restrictions<\/strong> vary from 20-30kph (around 12-18mph). Speed restrictions are most likely going to apply here, and rightly so. E-scooters doing 40mph pose a significant danger in the event of a collision, whereas scooters restricted to 16mph are actually slower than some cyclists.<\/p>\n Helmets<\/strong> are recommended but not mandatory in most European countries. Whether helmets are made mandatory here isn\u2019t clear as yet.\u00a0 I hope not, we\u2019ve recently seen with masks how unenforceable such measures are in outdoor public places. Ironically masks are popular with scooter riders, anyone who has had a bee hit them in the eye at 16mph is likely to adopt them through choice.<\/p>\n No go zones \u2013 <\/strong>these exist in many cities with the current rental schemes, some of them are likely to be apply to owner riders, however it\u2019s more difficult to automatically enforce using locational, geo fencing\u00a0 technology on private vehicles.<\/p>\n Licensing and Insurance<\/strong> \u2013 special insurance is needed in some parts of Europe and could factor in here. Any attempt to introduce licensing will be controversial, as there is no need for a licence for a an e-bike, so why should scooters be treated differently ?<\/p>\n Some European countries have specific other restrictions<\/strong>, for example outlawing two riders on one scooter.\u00a0 Confiscation<\/strong> is the likely punishment any for misuse that we occasionally see on the streets at the moment. Flouting the law is less likely if you\u2019re riding a \u00a3500 investment that can be confiscated as a result than it is if you\u2019ve paid a couple of quid to ride on a rental.<\/p>\n In fact I saw very little flouting of the rules in the continental cities I visited. My experiences abroad suggest that giving scooter owners rights and responsibility will actually reduce problems, for example scooters simply abandoned in inconvenient places are much less likely to occur than with rentals, imagine if we all owned our own shopping trolleys \u2013 I doubt so many would end up in the river.\u00a0 Legalising and controlling private owner use is the way forward and hopefully it will happen soon.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" With many cities participating in the national trial rental scheme rented e-scooters have become a common sight in our city. Whatever your views on them, it\u2019s clear they have been adopted by some (mainly young) people as their transport of choice.\u00a0 Use of private scooters on public roads and pavements is still not legal, but… <\/p>\n