Hi there!
Does anyone know if there is any company coming to Dublin with electric scooters? I have seen and used them in so many capitals (and cities) around Europe that I am just surprised is not happening in Dublin!
Any reason behind this?
there are no companies renting them out; their current legal status is they are MPVs and require helmet, licence, insurance, etc.
They aren't legal as it stands in Ireland.
😮😮😮😮😮😮 I had no idea there was a requirement for these things... Wowwwwww...
AFAIK, technically, they are; they are MPVs (motor powered vehicles) and as such require a licence, helmet, insurance etc.
but as there's no way to get insurance, and no testing regime, etc., in practice it's impossible to use them on the road legally. legislation is under way to rectify this but is still many months away from being passed.
I think the council has already issued permits to some companies but they can't start operating until the new legislation goes through. I just hope it's not a free-for-all like in some other cities where the scooters are just dumped anywhere and everywhere.
I saw that in France and Germany, they are dumped everywhere... In Dublin though it may be different due to the theft culture.
Probably have to scan a QR code to release it or something like that similar to bleeper bikes
*Years if at all.
Have noticed they have only just got to stage three out of eleven in two years... plenty of time to have the bill not make it in time and drop away when the next election occurs...
famously, there are no thefts in any other European cities
Well 'arrest' might be a bit strong but there are occasional reports of scooters being confiscated.
They've been told not to. They do occasionally bring people to court but they must have really annoyed the Garda.
It's the Irish solution to all our problems, make laws and ignore them until something bad happens. Then make a new law to "fix" the problem which was ignored, then ignore the new law. The best one was they big deal they made years ago about passing a law making it illegal to be drunk in public to replace the ignored law about it being illegal to be drunk in public. A radio reporter was interviewing a senior Garda the night the law came in in Temple Bar and asked where they going to arrest everyone there, the answer was "No"
they have to prioritise their resources - if they thought eScooters were a serious menace they'd go after them. They're not (despite the bleating of some motorists and radio presenters), so they don't.
Regarding the law being ignored - it's not as if a law was introduced to specifically ban them. They fall under an old law that was written when they hadn't even been invented; the law needs to be updated and will be shortly, I guess the guards don't see the point in chasing people over it in the meantime.
Biggest risk currently is to pedestrians, most roads are not suitable for the scooters small wheels so they are being used on the narrow footpath.
I'd imagine the biggest risk is to the riders of the scooters themselves, I've heard a few stories of people banjaxing themselves coming off them.
Things might change when pedestrians start getting injured by these scooters.
Obtaining a licence and insurance for a moped or car is a routine matter. You can't obtain motor tax for a scooter and therefore can't get insurance.
.....and I seriously doubt that you'd be 'arrested' for driving without a licence.
I was at an event last week in Sandyford, the CEO of Zipp Mobility was there. His view, and the view of other attendees was that legislation would be in place by mid 2023 at the latest, main issue will be the speed and it's most likely going to be limited to 25kmph. It's my understanding that the likes of Zipp will have agreements in place with the local authorities and there will be scooter stations - you won't just be able to dump them anywhere.
On the danger of small wheels. I too would have been a sceptic, however I drove a zipp scooter just over 1km in distance over gravel, tarmac, straw(!) and in and out of tight spaces on the day- it felt very stable and easy to use. Should have no problem on Dublin streets.
![Photo of [Deleted User]](https://wd.vanillicon.com/v2/dbd5cbbbd4e910e15f74e7f3250e1b58.svg)
