Government plan to regulate Step scooter sharing senseless as cities look at bans

Minister Mark Harbers of Infrastructure plans to implement legislation allowing sharing services for Step electric scooters in the Netherlands. Step-sharing should become legal in 2025. But the large cities are already considering whether banning the popular means of transport would be possible, BNR reports.

“They won’t be allowed on the streets here,” a spokesperson for The Hague alderman Anne Mulder (mobility) told the broadcaster.

Amsterdam said it wanted to discuss “customization” with Minister Harbers. “It may be clear that we are already concerned about the safety on the cycle path due to the enormous crowds,” said a spokesperson for alderman Melanie van der Horst.

Utrecht is also against allowing Step sharing. “The question is whether the vehicles are of added value for the city’s mobility objectives,” a spokesperson for the city council told BNR.

Rotterdam said it would ‘remain in conversation” with the Ministry about specific rules.

Step scooters are enormously popular in many European cities. Last month, an overwhelming majority of Paris residents voted for a local ban on Step-sharing. The vehicle caused a lot of inconvenience in the French city.