Are Electric Scooters Street Legal & What Can I Do About It?
If you are into electric scooters lifestyle or you are planning to be this is the ground land. Of course, you know what electric scooter can do for you and now you are thinking about some law technical details.
No matter how small those details may seem, they tend to become a big problem, in some countries or states. So, we have some work to do. Informing yourself is the priority.
We all know that gas scooter is louder and police magnet as well. Unlike a Gas scooter, electric scooters are not so loud, as the matter of fact, these with hub motor are quiet as a mouse.
You can ride around like a ninja and not so rarely you will pass a police officer like a ghost. However, if there is a law against, sooner or later you will be caught.
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Things have been changing since first electric vehicle touch the ground, so you have to be in the flow.
I bet you don’t want to end up with 1000$ electric scooter and 500$ fine at the very first day of commuting. Well, if that is the case and these following questions catch your attention, keep reading and get to know the matter.
You can see that there is a way of buying an electric scooter and get away from ticket and you can learn some ways how to avoid getting pulled over.You can also if you are lucky enough to live in the area that is electric scooter friendly, buy some of those and ride it without any concern at all.
Either way, we are all having a benefit from it. Let’s begin.
Footpath
Footpaths are intended for pedestrians, obviously. In some countries, it’s called pavement or sidewalk. Either way, we all know what those are. That’s right, for pedestrians. This is their territory and buzzing around 20 mph can be dangerous.
We have to be alert and careful when we are on sidewalks. Some countries don’t allow riding on those, some do. New York forbids electric scooters even on bike lanes.
In Barcelona, you can see Segways and electric scooters all over the place. It is no wonder, we all know what benefits those little electric machines provide us, especially if the weather is pleasant and hot, as it is in Barcelona.
In Singapore riding on sidewalks is right as long as you respect some rules (I am sure that this is the case everywhere as well):
Use your bell
Use front and rear light
Maintain safe speed
Respect pedestrians speed
On traffic junctions always push as like you are pedestrian
Do not rush pedestrians
It is clever to get off and make a push on crossroads. It is safer, and it doesn’t require a big fuss. Just glide of the scooter and then get on again as you cross.
Roads
New York has some problems with electric scooters, obviously. Beside footpaths and bike lanes, those are forbidden on the roads as well. Any type of roads, not just big ones. There is no scenario that after you have been pulled over by a policeman, you get let off.
However, in reality, there are numerous examples of people who use electric scooters without a problem. We are not here to point out law reasons or something like that. We are here to be familiar with the fact that electric scooters are not allowed on New York streets.
In the same way, there is a speed limit for cars, and you probably have seen that someone get away with speeding. And after a while, you see some bloke who just cross the limit a bit and have to pay a fine. That’s life, just be aware that New York is not electric scooter friendly.
Electric bikes and hoverboards are also on that blacklist. You can hear that this is against the law, that there is a possibility to get a fine and this is something you have to keep in mind.
Germany allows you to ride it on roads which has 25 miles limit. Law considers that it is safe enough. On the other hand, there is New York which beliefs riding those could provide more harm than gains. Maybe it is a good point, because of a number of people on that small space.
Singapore
In Singapore, it becomes a great issue. More and more people have been caught riding their electric scooters on the roads with 2 or more lanes. You can ride those on bicycle lanes even on paths, and there is no need for riding it on actual, traffic busy roads. At least some of us are thinking like that. Some don’t. It is common sense in my opinion.
Bike Lanes
There are countries that put electric scooter is the same group with e-bikes, and because of that, there is no problem for electric scooter users. They can freely ride along with cyclists and e-bikes.
As far as you use bike lanes, there would be no problems. A helmet is always a smart choice even if it isn’t required by law. Some speed is involved in bike lanes, you can agree with that, and smart choice is to be safe as much as you can.
If in your country there is or not the law about it, some riding techniques you have to adjust in order to ride safely and by the rules.
When I say “by the rules,” it means that you don’t put so much risk and attention on yourself. If there is a law against electric scooter it is even more practical for you to use it, so:
It is not smart move to ride faster than everybody else. Even if there is a law that allows you to ride in bike lanes. However, if there is some law that doesn’t allow to ride on it you should be even more cautious and smarter.
These tips are so obvious, so important, yet so overlooked.
If in your country laws about electric scooter is not so loud and clear, riding smart is essential. Use these tips and ride below a radar if you know what I mean.
Some General Rules
Rider has to be over 16, and if you ride it, you need to have a license in your pocket. However, if you ride it with cautions and in the common sense way, it is very unlikely you will get pulled over by a police officer.
Every scooter that has a top speed of 20 mph is street legal. However, you can have some 40 mph mean machine (The Fastest Electric Scooters In The World - 2018 Edition) and put a limiter on it through the settings and solve the problem.
There are some laws that are in the process of understanding that this has a great impact on everyday commute.
So, in close future, those laws will change and if you want to know exactly what is the case in your area, please contact local authorities and make sure what will be the case in two months or 1-year period.
Until then all steps you can start applying in order to be safe, less visible (for authorities) and more friendly to other traffic participants.
Great Example What Can Be Done
In Barcelona every day there are more and more car restricted areas and those little electric vehicles are more than welcome. This is a great example what can be done after a law allows us to use these great vehicles.
On the first, you can see Segways (Types Of Electric Scooters You Can Find On The Market In 2018) and in the second video, there is a great example of how you can go through all around the city on electric scooter such as UScooter (The Best Electric Scooters – Listed & Reviewed – 2018 Edition)
So many benefits, so much fun.
Segways are a present from heaven for tourist guides.
You can see what I mean in this video
When it comes to traveling and sightseeing of the city you want to see as much as possible, right? And in shortest time possible... However, kilometers of walking isn't such a great idea.
This is one of the great ways to see everything without feeling too tired at the end of the day in your hotel room. In the end, we are traveling to enjoy, not to be exhausted.
High visibility sweater and helmet are important too. Don’t forget you seems like you are walking in that up position. However, you are doing 15 mph. Helmet and sweater will stand you out a bit.
Also, a helmet is there for every case. Maybe you will need it once, but that one is a difference between life and death.
Conclusion
Street rules are something you have to apply. It doesn’t matter if you are on your bike, in a car or on a scooter. It is always smart to drive defensive, not aggressive. This is especially the case if you are unprotected on your scooter.
Passengers and drivers have steel construction to protect them; we have nothing. Nothing beside helmet and our style of riding.
You will always notice big pickup truck at the crossroads. Right? But they may not notice you, that’s the fact. This is our burden, and because of that, we have to notice everything and everyone (pedestrians) and ride carefully.
A sensible decision is to inform yourself a bit about your local law and rules. Also, observe the situation in your area. What is the most important is to observe the way of traffic in your district.
If there is a law to allow you to ride, but in your commute route is too much traffic that has chaotic nature you can conclude that there is a problem.