Toronto never adopted a shared e-scooter program. And as far as I know, e-scooters in general are technically illegal to use on our public roads, though this illegality seems to be minimally enforced. But today, more cities around the world seem to be following suit.
Paris — which had become the leading scooter market in Europe — voted to ban them in 2023 (albeit with an extremely low voter turnout). Shared e-scooters are now also banned in Madrid, Malta, and in all of the Netherlands.
But I continue to think that this is a shame. I first tried a shared e-scooter in Lisbon in 2019. And at the time, I wrote "I now know what all the fuss is about!" It was a lot of fun. I used it to ride out to the Museum of Art, Architecture, and Technology. I also said that they would be arriving in Toronto imminently. Nope.
The main concerns seem to be around urban clutter and riders using them irresponsibly. But I think you could say the exact same thing about cars, and we're not going to ban those anytime soon.
So I agree with what Karen Vancluysen says in this recent CityLab interview: Keep e-scooters on the menu and give people as many transportation alternatives as possible. They're not going to work for everyone, but that's okay. They're one option in a broader mobility network.
Cover photo by Kseniia PENKOVA on Unsplash
Brandon Donnelly
Over 4.1k subscribers
Hi Brandon. Your posts are always thought provoking and with all due respect I sometimes disagree with you especially when it comes to cars. In this case your comment: "The main concerns seem to be around urban clutter and riders using them irresponsibly. But I think you could say the exact same thing about cars, and we're not going to ban those anytime soon." In my humble opinion as a car driver in Toronto, there is absolutely no comparison between between "irresponsible car drivers" and same E-scooters. For the number of cars still occupying roads vs the number of e-scooters, I see scooters almost without fail breaking every rule in the book on a consistent level - with a potential for catastrophic injury to the rider and the innocent bystander. If cars were to do same, we truly would be in trouble.