Banned after a citizen vote, rental scooters will gradually disappear from the streets of Paris. But not overnight.
By Isabelle Missiaen for Le Point
© Bruno Levesque / MAXPPP / IP3 PRESS/MAXPPP
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DOn Sunday April 2, just over 100,000 Parisians took part in a vote organized by the Paris City Hall to decide on the future of self-service electric scooters from operators Dott, Lime and Tier Mobility in the capital. Despite a low turnout (7.46% of registered voters), voters largely decided to ban these two-wheelers. A decision to which the mayor, Anne Hidalgo, has promised to comply. So, what will become of the 15,000 scooters, their parking areas or the jobs they generated?
First of all, recalls The HuffPost, the ban will not happen overnight. Self-service scooters remain authorized in Greater Paris until August 31, after which they will gradually disappear.
800 jobs
What about the 2,500 parking zones? On BFMTV, David Belliard, transport assistant at the Paris City Hall, evokes several ways to reinvest these locations: “trees”, “cycle paths”, but also the possibility of “expanding the sidewalks” and “precisely allowing the most vulnerable populations to be able to walk better in the city and in complete safety”. In any case, he rules out for the moment the possibility of turning them into parking areas for cars.
Self-service scooters also represent 800 jobs in Paris. On the subject of their safeguard, David Belliard assures that the town hall will “work with [les opérateurs] social aspects”. Dott, Lime and Tier Mobility also provide self-service bikes. Some of the agents could therefore see their jobs safeguarded if the operators choose to maintain this activity, or even to develop it. According to David Belliard, 3,000 new electric bikes have been ordered in Paris in recent weeks.
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However, a source at Dott, interviewed by The Parisian, expresses his doubts: “Without scooters, we walk on one leg. Maintaining a large fleet of bicycles alone is not economically and operationally sustainable. »
Finally, what will become of the users? Of course, personal scooters are still allowed in the city. But, according to a survey conducted by the Paris City Hall, 34% of self-service users will fall back on public transport, 29% on walking and 9% on hybrid bikes.