Called to the polls as part of a citizen consultation, Parisians overwhelmingly voted to ban self-service scooters in the capital. And after ?
If the almost unanimous vote of Parisians who came for the occasion should take effect in the coming months, not all scooters will however be banned: only those available in self-service will be affected by this decision. It should therefore always be possible to use this means of transport in the capital, provided that it is a personal purchase.
A final vote… despite a very low turnout
This Sunday, Parisians were called upon to vote for or against maintaining self-service scooters in the capital. In all the boroughs, the counter won. In total, the voters thus expressed themselves with nearly 90% of the votes against the maintenance. In some arrondissements, the vote is even close to 92%, as in the 16th arrondissement of Paris. A decision that directly echoes the statements of the mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, who was able to indicate last January her wish to stop the proliferation of scooters from private operators in the city.
This unprecedented citizen consultation is marked by a very low turnout: only 7.46% of Parisians came to give their opinion, which corresponds to approximately 103,000 voters. There is no doubt that this question, which polarizes especially on the side of certain local residents exasperated by this means of transport deemed insecure and demeaning, has above all generated the interest of those most resistant to maintenance. However, the operators had tried to turn their backs on Sunday, voting day, by offering their services free of charge throughout the day.
A popular decision with its consequences
Despite the majority ire of Parisians against this means of transport deemed too dangerous, this citizen vote will also have inevitable consequences on many jobs, in particular among the employees of the most famous operators of self-service scooters such as Lime, Dott or Tier. Indeed, more than 800 jobs are threatened by this ban in the capital. For example, Paris represents 15% of Dott’s total turnover, and this voted decision will therefore have immediate economic consequences for the company.
“We take note of this unprecedented consultation, the mobilization of which could have been broader and more representative if the methods of the vote had been different: more polling stations, electronic voting, municipal information”, the operators reacted together in a press release last night. The latter were also able to confirm that their service will not be renewed from September 1 in the capital.
Despite everything, this decision should not impact the personal use of electric scooters: this vote only applies to self-service motorized two-wheelers, so it will be possible to use your own scooter in the capital.
Source : BFM TV, Huffington Post
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