The city council of Kolozsvár (Cluj-Napoca) had to draft a regulation regarding the usage of electric scooters, reported the kronikaonline news portal. Bolt was the first company to launch the electric scooter rental service in the city in July. The service caught on quickly, and these scooters proved to be quite popular ever since appearing on the streets. Nevertheless, since July, there have been dozens of complaints addressed to the mayor, as many were inconvenienced by the scooter users darting about on sidewalks and public roads, disrespecting even basic traffic rules. Furthermore, many users just left the scooters lying around in all kinds of places. About a month later, competition appeared as well, with Lime introducing its own scooters in the area.
The draft regulation is now under public debate, meaning that citizens can browse through it on the website of the mayor’s office. Residents of Kolozsvár are entitled to express their opinion regarding the proposed provisions until September 21 by email or by submitting their notes to the information center of the city hall or to the departments of the local administration in their residential areas. The city council will most likely vote on the regulation at the end of the month, wrote kronikaonline.ro.
According to the draft, electric scooters can be used as a means of transport in the city, but it is forbidden for more than one person to use one scooter. Furthermore, this means of transport is not allowed on sidewalks or on public roads where the speed limit is more than 50 kilometers per hour. The main routes for people riding electric scooters should be bicycle lanes in the city. The draft regulation also states that companies renting scooters are obliged to gather those left lying around within 90 minutes, as they can be parked only in certain spots. The draft also states that companies would face a fine of RON 200 to 400 for any infringement of the regulations.
The mayor of Kolozsvár, Emil Boc, pointed out in a statement that the local authorities are not in a position to forbid the alternative means of transport, which are used across Europe, but “everything possible will be done so that people use these scooters according to legal provisions.”
Title image: City hall is trying to put a stop to the rampage of uncivilized scooter riders by envisaging fines on the transportation companies that rent them.
Source:cluj24.ro
