As the City of West Hollywood continues to grapple with whether and how to integrate dockless mobility devices (i.e. electric rental scooters) into its transportation world, the City of Paris is happily preparing to pull the plug on them.
In Paris, the city’s administration has taken a firm stance against rental electric scooters, culminating in a ban that takes effect Friday. The journey to this decision began in 2018 when rental e-scooters were first introduced to the streets of Paris. Despite becoming a popular mode of transportation, they also became a source of numerous accidents, some resulting in fatalities. Now, the three companies that operate scooters must remove all their devices from Paris streets by the end of today.
Efforts to regulate the use of these scooters, including reducing the number of companies permitted to operate and encouraging users to park in designated areas, did not alleviate the problems. In 2021, the situation escalated when an Italian woman became the third person to die in a scooter-related incident.
The city’s Deputy Mayor for Transportation, David Belliard, noted persistent issues, especially concerning “insecurity and sharing of public space.” This led to a referendum in April where a significant majority of the participating Parisians voted to remove the scooters, prompting Mayor Anne Hidalgo to announce their removal by September.
Despite the low voter turnout, the decision was largely welcomed, with residents expressing relief over the removal of a transportation mode seen as dangerous and inconvenient. However, some, particularly the younger demographic, expressed disappointment, citing the scooters’ convenience for short-distance travel. Companies affected by the ban, such as Lime, have voiced plans to redeploy their fleets to other receptive European cities.
Meanwhile, across the Atlantic in West Hollywood, City Council recently voted narrowly to maintain its dockless micro-mobility program, which has been operational since July 2021. The pilot program, set to expire at the end of October, has polarized both the council and the community, with safety and nuisance concerns at the forefront of the discussions. Despite acknowledging the problems, including bad contracts with vendors Bird and Lime and dangerous rider behavior, the council, led by Mayor Sepi Shyne, Mayor Pro Tem John Erickson, and Councilmember Chelsea Byers, opted to retain the program, emphasizing the role of scooters and e-bikes in promoting alternative transportation and advancing climate goals. The council plans to renegotiate contracts, and a speed cap of 10 mph they requested is already in place. The future of the program will be revisited in late October, with a focus on gathering more data and community feedback to inform the decision.
As cities globally navigate the evolving landscape of urban mobility, the experiences of Paris and West Hollywood highlight the common challenges they face: ensuring safety, fostering responsible use, and balancing the benefits of dockless mobility with its downsides. While Paris has chosen to halt the scooter rental services, West Hollywood is taking a more cautious approach, seeking to refine and potentially expand its pilot program based on community feedback and data analysis.
Dockless mobility continues to elicit strong reactions from all quarters. Proponents argue that e-scooters and e-bikes offer a green alternative to cars, reducing traffic congestion and supporting local businesses. Critics have expressed concerns over safety, with pedestrians at risk from irresponsible riders and sidewalks often blocked by improperly parked devices. Despite a much-publicized scooter accident involving Councilmember Lauren Meister’s sister, crashes involving scooters have remained few and far between, at least those that have been reported.
As both cities and others around the world grapple with these issues, the coming months will be crucial in shaping the future of dockless mobility, a sector still very much in its infancy but with the potential to significantly impact urban transportation landscapes globally.
I don’t see any seniors on the scooters. How far do people ride them? A few blocks? A mile? What happened to walking? Exercise. The scooters are a nuisance and an eyesore. Just a temporary novelty.
Buy one, I did. I keep it around for small grocery runs or to zip around for fun. 34 MpH… Whips up Sunset Plaza drive like nothing.
Keep em or not, you can still buy one.
Oh, and Climate goals, woke joke.
Can you still say “Speedy Gonzalez”?
Sure you can.
Make Scooters Great for Kids Again. If you’re over the age of 10 and still relying on a scooter as your key mode of transportation, you may want to rethink things.
Tell me you’re a boomer without telling me you’re a boomer.
Most of the wehoville commenters are boomers.
And own a house and vehicles. Riding a scooter and renting an apartment are things you know about.
and it’s only three people complaining right???
Boomers have the majority of wealth in this country. They don’t rent apartments in West Hollywood and ride scooters.
I know plenty of boomers who rent 🙂
The median age in West Hollywood is 38. Something to remember…
where u get that 38 number
Um will you let me post the link?
dont know what you mean, im the morning shift, 6am ..dont know what happened yesterday or what comments, but generally links are not allowed, as we had lots of viruses that led to the site going down twice. if you do see some links its because they are from verifiable senders,
The median age in the entire US is 38. Weho is not unique. That means half are over 38. Does that including you???
That you know “plenty” of people that rent doesn’t surprise anyone.
But you know he’s right. Scooters are for children.
No, they aren’t. But its not surprising you’re against scooters, considering your condition.
It is apparent to me that the people who are in charge in Paris care more about the safety of their citizens, than (3) people who are in charge in Weho do! Money and their political ambitions seem to be their #1 priority! When I met with Sepi earlier in the year, I asked her point-blank, “are you getting money from scooter companies?“ And she said no. But she could very well have been lying. I found out after that meeting, that she lied to me about several other things. And as the year has gone by, we all have… Read more »
One would think matters of obvious public safety would be taken seriously, especially when there is a quick easy and cheap fix, as is the case with simply banning scooters from sidewalks. Sadly, we are dealing with some ruthless liars and hypocrites on our Council. I am certain your side will not be alone at the October 16 meeting. You gotta love when the Sepis of the world lecture others about “being green” as some faux rational for keeping scooters, yet on her recent questionable free secret trip to Israel, her flight carbon emissions were around 1,500 kilos per passenger,… Read more »
It is apparent to me that the people who are in charge in Paris care more about the safety of their citizens, than the people who are in charge in Weho do! When I met with Sepi earlier in the year, I asked her point-blank, “are you getting money from scooter companies?“ And she said no. But she could very well have been lying. I found out after that meeting, that she lied to me about several other things. And as the year has gone by, we all have have learned that she is not trustworthy. I am begging anyone… Read more »
sorry for the double post. I was just trying to edit, and the gremlins got me!
First off France is a western imperialist capitalist state with Paris as its capitol completely overrun by a racist paramilitary police force oppressing their minority groups. What they have in common with West Hollywood is the need to elect more Socialists☭ to solve their problems and, realize we don’t have a scooter problem we have a car problem ❗ We need to ban ALL private cars & trucks and, just have Public Transit🚈 & Electric Scooters.😎
You should learn that we are all Socialists. If you use a public road, school, hospital, medical office, airport, bus, public sidewalk, then you are a Socialist as they are all fully or partially funded with taxpayer money (“Socialism”). It’s not a negative term. Marxists, on the other hand, is who are running West Hollywood, and that is a negative term in my mind, as they don’t respect private property. I’m glad I could educate you. I do like your use of symbols.
None of the city council members are Marxists. I’m glad I could educate you.
You state this as if they each told you and you speak for them. Or, you are one of them.
If I needed you to educate me on anything, we would all be in trouble. You might want to look up the definition of Marxism, it couldn’t possibly be any closer to 3 of our current Councilmembers. And can you try to come up with your own comedy material, rather than recycle mine?
Reality ✅ it was MARX who first discovered “market cycles” so you might have to call every Economist from the late 19th century on a Marxist ❗ 🤣
None of the city council members are Marxists. I’m glad we could educate you.
Oh yah there a-lot of people who are NOT Socialists☭ and, boy are they being suckered good ❗ Now if they are calling themselves “capitalists” it’s just like someone supporting the space program calling themselves an astronaut. 🤣 A “capitalist” does NOT need to work, deriving their income through ownership of income producing property.
Oi vey…”waycist…waycist ..wahhhhh wahhhhh… everybody’s waycist….wahhhh.” That “racist” schtick is sooooo tired. Get a new spin; it’s laughable.
Actually me and people have basically won our conflicts with western imperialists going “boo hoo, we are victims of terrorists, criminals and, Communists☭, NOW we need $Trillions more ❗ ” 🤣 And they still lose big time, if westerners encounter my relatives in Donetsk Peoples Republic☭ or Chechen Military, PLEASE surrender when given the option.
Shine has not denied getting a kickback from BBB which could be in the thousands of dollars as a binders fee. As far as these 3rd grade scooter companies, are they paying off the corrupt three.. Shine, Erickson, Byers???
Ditch the scooters, keep the bikes.
Once again, three unsophisticated council members endorsing irresponsible behavior in their childish vision of solving mobility and climate issues. Paris=Sophisticated. West Hollywood =A Juvenile Dumpster
I spent 5 weeks in Paris this summer, (thank you, renters for paying me), and I can attest that they are a true menace. Just like in Weho, there were no consequences for violators in Paris, until now. Weho Sheriffs do whatever they can to avoid actual work of fining violators, whether they are on a scooter, construction, noise, neighbor issues, etc. For some reason, however, if you park your car over a minute in an expired meter, or 1″ in the red zone, you will instantly receive a huge fine. They should pass a law where even the smallest… Read more »
There are those who truly believe that utopia can be created by embracing every new toy or concept that comes along. The problem is that they don’t take human nature into account. Riders are not going to park them as they should and are going to leave them in the middle of the sidewalks or other places where they are going to be in the way of pedestrians and drivers, and they are going to ride them on sidewalks endangering walkers. Yes, they can be a solution for the few who really need them but those people can purchase their… Read more »
The city of West Hollywood voted narrowly to maintain the scooters? How about: the three self-deluded Marxists on the council voted to keep the death sticks on our sidewalks and roads.
As to young people whining that they’re good for short distances, try walking, junior.