Lisbon backtracks on e-scooters - 1st March 2023

Like many cities the world over, in an attempt to tackle global warming and sever emissions from transport, Lisbon jumped on the e-scooter bandwagon. However, now the city's having to take a step backwards.

Car share programmes, dockless bikes and e-scooter schemes are just some of the environmental strategies which have been embraced, and e-scooters are frequently considered the ideal solution for urban mobility, being affordable, user-friendly and providing easy access to all corners of the city.

Despite this, e-scooters also create a panoply of problems and Lisbon's the latest city forced into stricter regulation of the vehicles. Carlos Moedas, Mayor of Lisbon, details the course of action now necessary, as an urgent response to e-scooter-related complications.

Carlos Moedas:"Three major decisions have been taken concerning scooters. Firstly, compulsory parking places, so that people can no longer leave their scooters wherever they want. We will create "hot spots" where they can leave their scooters and only there can they leave them. Secondly, a limited number of scooters for each operator. An operator can only own 1500 scooters in winter and 1750 in summer. Thirdly, the maximum speed is set at 20 kilometres per hour."

As such, Lisbon is following in the scooter tracks of the Scandinavian capitals Stockholm and Oslo, where they're already acting on directives to curb the negative effects of the two-wheeled vehicles.

Orthopaedic surgeon Marino Machado has also authored a study on scooter-associated collisions.

Marino Machado: "As for scooter accidents, in financial terms, if you add emergency care, medical consultations, hospital admissions and surgeries, you are looking at around 300,000 euros over the course of one year."

While the new measures appear drastic, it's hoped that from this month onwards the regulations will alleviate Lisbon's problems and will preempt the need for a total veto on scooters, the current state of affairs in Barcelona and Montreal.

E-scooter rider Micaela expects the newly introduced rules to be successful all round.

Micaela Marcos: "I think these measures are good, they will improve safety for users, for drivers and for pedestrians."