Privately owned E-scooters will be legalised for use on public roads and cycle lanes in the UK as part of the Government’s new Transport Bill, which was introduced in the Queen’s speech.
The Queen’s speech announced:
“Her Majesty’s government will improve transport across the United Kingdom, delivering safer, cleaner services and enabling more innovation.”
Following this statement, on May the 11th in the House of Lords, Baroness Vere shared:
“Safety is also at the heart of our plans to create a regulatory framework for smaller, lighter, zero-emission vehicles, sometimes known as e-scooters. Their popularity is clear, and new rules are needed to improve safety and crack down on illegal use while unlocking innovation and growth in this emerging multi-billion-pound industry.”
Following on from that statement, transport minister Baroness Vere said the Government planned “to create a regulatory framework for smaller, lighter zero-emission vehicles, sometimes known as e-scooters”. She added: “It is our intention that the (Transport) Bill will create a low-speed, zero-emission vehicle category that is independent from the cycle and motor vehicle categories. New powers would allow the Government to decide the vehicles that fall into this new category in the future and how they should be regulated to make sure that they are safe to us. We hope that E-scooters will be the first of these vehicles.”
So, at this present time, privately owned electric scooters are only legal for use on privately owned land (With landowners’ permission). However, it’s great to see the government taking the necessary steps to get us that one step closer towards a more economical way of travel.
What does this mean for E-scooter owners? If you’re an e-scooter owner, it means you’ll eventually be able to ride on public roads. We expect that there will be some safety regulations put into place such as Indicators, safety wear, lights etc.
When will the new laws around e-scooters come into place? We expect the new transport bill regulations to come into place in the year ahead. We’ll keep you updated as soon as we hear more.
