As of September 1, electric scooters will disappear from the streets of Paris. The French capital will thus become the first European city to ban the use of public electric scooters. This is reported by the RTBF television channel.
The City Council has decided not to renew the contracts with the three private operators that supply these vehicles in Paris. Rental services were required to remove the two-wheelers by August 31.
The council’s decision follows the results of the city’s referendum that was held in April this year. Of the 103,084 respondents to the question “For or against self-service scooters”, 89% answered “no”. First of all, citizens were concerned about improperly parked scooters, as well as the safety of their users.
The vote was criticized for low turnout (only 7.5% of citizens participated), including those from rental companies. In 2022, about 400,000 electric scooter trips were recorded in Paris. Citizens interviewed by RTBF are also unhappy with the innovation. According to one resident, riding a scooter was more convenient than using a private car. Another respondent, an American tourist, also noted that he found riding a scooter more comfortable than taking the subway.
A trial swimming tournament in the run-up to the 2024 Olympics was previously canceled in Paris. Water quality in the Seine remains below acceptable standards after recent above-average rainfall. We talk about it in more detail here.
