Εισαγωγικό κείμενο
- 27 Apr 2023
- international
Paris will ban electric skates from September 1, the mayor of the French capital announced after citizens voted to remove them from the city's streets. However, the management and rental companies of the electric skates expressed hope to overturn this plan.
The proposal to ban electric scooters won 89% of the vote, according to the city's Twitter account in a process described as a rare "public consultation" and caused long lines outside polling stations set up across the city.
The capital's mayor, Anne Hidalgo, said she would respect the result of the vote.
"From September 1 there will no longer be electric skates for rent in Paris," he told a press conference.
Skate rental companies pointed to the low turnout and hoped the mayor would seek a compromise.
"We remain optimistic that we can continue to work with Mayor Hidalgo to adopt sensible regulations instead of a ban on electric skates and avoid the backsliding of Paris," said a spokesperson for Lime.
Another spokesman, from the firm Dott, said the referendum was "heavily influenced by very restrictive voting methods", which led to a very low turnout and was particularly lopsided towards older age groups.
French Transport Minister Clement Bonn, who is seen as a possible contender for the capital's mayoralty in 2026, told BFM television that the vote was a "massive failure of the Republic".
In 2021, 24 people were killed in accidents related to their use across the country, including one in Paris. Last year the capital recorded 459 accidents and incidents involving electric scooters and similar vehicles, three of which were fatal.
