To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will provide a summary of current legislation relating to the use of e-scooters on public highways in the UK.
Answered on
23 June 2022
As motor vehicles having fewer than 4 wheels and weighing less than 410 kg unladen, e-scooters are classed as motorcycles as defined in Section 185 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 and, because of their low speed, within the subclass of moped. This means that e-scooters have to abide by the same road traffic legislation as mopeds and motorcycles.
The Electric Scooter Trials and Traffic Signs (Coronavirus) Regulations and General Directions 2020 (SI 2020/663) were introduced to allow the e-scooter trials to take place. The regulations remove or relax requirements for rental e-scooters being used in a permitted trial area, in a way which is proportionate to the vehicle type, to enable trials to take place on public roads.
The Traffic Signs (Coronavirus) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2021 (SI 2021/75) further refined the application of the TSRGD to e-scooters being used in a trial to clarify where e-scooters are permitted for use within defined trial areas.