Electric scooters are allowed in Britain. British authorities want to reduce the burden on public transport during the pandemic. But many complain that the owners of electric scooters break the rules and interfere with walking on the sidewalks. What is happening in countries where they can already be freely driven, and what is the situation in Russia?
The law allowing electric scooters to ride on public roads and bike lanes in British cities went into effect Saturday. There are reservations in it – it will be possible to ride on the streets only on a rental scooter and only with a license, and in certain zones, which, however, exist throughout Britain.
The government planned to allow scooters in 2021. However, it was decided to do this simultaneously with the abolition of quarantine in order to at least partially preserve the reduction of harmful emissions from cars, which after the introduction of quarantine became much less.
Until now, electric scooters have been semi-legal in the United Kingdom. For those who own a scooter, legally nothing changes. The IRS requires that everything that moves on British roads be marked, numbered and taxed. It is difficult to achieve that scooters are regulated in this way. Because of this, you can only move on them on private territory and with the permission of its owner, that is, you cannot drive along the streets.
This law has not changed, but not everyone in London observes it. The scooter is often used from home to the bus stop and from the metro to the office. But they also go out onto the roads. The first and loudest scooter accident was the death of TV presenter Emily Hartridge. Last summer, she crashed into a truck in the Battersea area and died.
The death of Hartridge, followed by several more deaths in accidents with electric scooters, has prompted a wave of calls to ban them on the roads, but their sales in Britain continue to grow.
In many countries, including Russia, the situation is similar. The number of scooters is growing, the legislation is not keeping pace, and many complain about the owners of scooters.
