Paris Votes to Ban Electric Scooters by September
2023-04-06
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1If you like riding electric scooters in Paris, be sure to plan a trip before September.
2People who live in the French capital voted recently to ban the vehicles.
3The city said Sunday on Twitter that 89 percent of voters were in favor of banning scooters.
4However, only about 7 percent of its residents voted in what was called a "public consultation."
5Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo said she would respect the vote.
6Hidalgo said at a news conference, "from September 1, there will be no more electric scooters for rent in Paris."
7Scooter operators pointed to the low number of voters and said they hoped to seek a compromise.
8A spokesperson for Lime said it hopes to work with the mayor to "avoid a step backward for Paris."
9A representative for Dott criticized the vote, saying the low turnout included mostly older voters.
10French Transport Minister Clement Beaune is a possible candidate in the next Paris mayoral election in 2026.
11Beaune appeared to agree with the scooter operators.
12In comments to a French broadcaster, he called the vote "a massive democratic flop."
13Paris permitted electric scooters for the first time in 2018.
14By 2020, the city had cut the number of companies that could operate scooters to three and restricted their speed to a maximum of 20 kilometers per hour.
15At the time, the city gave the companies a contract that lasts until September.
16In hopes of being permitted to continue operation, the scooter companies also offered to add more restrictions.
17They included limiting users to those over 18 and adding license plates so police could identify those who broke traffic rules.
18In 2021, 24 people died from scooter-related accidents in France, including one in Paris.
19Last year, the city registered 459 accidents with electric scooters and similar vehicles, including three dead.
20One person who voted to ban the scooters was Audrey Cordier, a 38-year-old doctor.
21"In my work," she said, "we see a lot of road accidents caused by scooters, so we really see the negative effects."
22Other voters said they would like more restrictions, but not a full ban.
23Thirty-five-year-old Pierre Waeckerle said, "I don't want scooters to do whatever they want ... but banning them is not the priority."
24I'm Dan Friedell.
1If you like riding electric scooters in Paris, be sure to plan a trip before September. People who live in the French capital voted recently to ban the vehicles. 2The city said Sunday on Twitter that 89 percent of voters were in favor of banning scooters. However, only about 7 percent of its residents voted in what was called a "public consultation." 3Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo said she would respect the vote. Hidalgo said at a news conference, "from September 1, there will be no more electric scooters for rent in Paris." 4Scooter operators pointed to the low number of voters and said they hoped to seek a compromise. 5A spokesperson for Lime said it hopes to work with the mayor to "avoid a step backward for Paris." A representative for Dott criticized the vote, saying the low turnout included mostly older voters. 6French Transport Minister Clement Beaune is a possible candidate in the next Paris mayoral election in 2026. Beaune appeared to agree with the scooter operators. In comments to a French broadcaster, he called the vote "a massive democratic flop." 7Paris permitted electric scooters for the first time in 2018. By 2020, the city had cut the number of companies that could operate scooters to three and restricted their speed to a maximum of 20 kilometers per hour. At the time, the city gave the companies a contract that lasts until September. 8In hopes of being permitted to continue operation, the scooter companies also offered to add more restrictions. They included limiting users to those over 18 and adding license plates so police could identify those who broke traffic rules. 9In 2021, 24 people died from scooter-related accidents in France, including one in Paris. Last year, the city registered 459 accidents with electric scooters and similar vehicles, including three dead. 10One person who voted to ban the scooters was Audrey Cordier, a 38-year-old doctor. "In my work," she said, "we see a lot of road accidents caused by scooters, so we really see the negative effects." 11Other voters said they would like more restrictions, but not a full ban. 12Thirty-five-year-old Pierre Waeckerle said, "I don't want scooters to do whatever they want ... but banning them is not the priority." 13I'm Dan Friedell. 14Dan Friedell adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on a report by Reuters. 15___________________________________________________________________ 16Words in This Story 17scooter -n. a leg-powered or battery-powered transit device people stand on 18resident -n. a person who lives in a place 19consultation -n. a discussion or consideration 20rent -v. to pay for something in return for its use, sometimes for a short time 21flop -adj. something that does not go well, unsuccessful 22license plate -n. a small sign attached to a vehicle which is used to identify the driver 23negative-adj. something that is not good; undesirable 24priority -n. something that is the most important 25__________________________________________________________________ 26We want to hear from you. Would you be sad to see Paris ban scooters? 27We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 28Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.