EcoWatch
Facebook 558k Twitter 222k Instagram 52k Subscribe Subscribe
  • Climate
  • Energy
  • Conservation
  • Food + Agriculture
  • Renewables
  • Oceans
  • Policy
  • Insights + Opinion
  • Go Solar Today
      • Top Companies By State
        • California Solar Companies
        • Texas Solar Companies
        • New York Solar Companies
        • Florida Solar Companies
        • See All States
      • Top Incentives By State
        • California Solar Incentives
        • Texas Solar Incentives
        • New York Solar Incentives
        • Florida Solar Incentives
        • See All States
      • Solar Panel Costs By State
        • Solar Panel Costs in California
        • Solar Panel Costs in Texas
        • Solar Panel Costs in New York
        • Solar Panel Costs in Florida
        • See All States
      • Value of Solar by State
        • Is Solar Worth It In California?
        • Is Solar Worth It in Texas?
        • Is Solar Worth It New York?
        • Is Solar Worth It In Florida?
        • See All States
      • Company Reviews
        • Tesla Solar Review
        • Sunrun Solar Review
        • SunPower Solar Review
        • Vivint Solar Review
        • See All Companies
      • Common Solar Questions
        • Can You Get Free Solar Panels?
        • Does Solar Increase Home Value?
        • What’re The Best Solar Batteries?
        • Can You Finance Solar?
        • Where To Buy Solar Panels?
        • Payback On Solar Panels?
      • Solar Resources
        • Interactive Solar Calculator
        • Federal Solar Tax Credit
        • Best Solar Panels For Most Homes
        • Tesla Solar Roof Review
        • Cheapest Solar Panels
      • Companies Compared
        • SunPower vs Tesla Solar
        • SunRun vs Tesla Solar
        • SunRun vs SunPower
        • SunPower vs Momentum Solar
        • SunPower vs ADT Solar
EcoWatch
  • Climate
  • Energy
  • Conservation
  • Food + Agriculture
  • Renewables
  • Oceans
  • Policy
  • Insights + Opinion
  • Go Solar Today
    • Go Solar Today
    • Top Companies By State
      • California Solar Companies
      • Texas Solar Companies
      • New York Solar Companies
      • Florida Solar Companies
      • See All States
    • Top Incentives By State
      • California Solar Incentives
      • Texas Solar Incentives
      • New York Solar Incentives
      • Florida Solar Incentives
      • See All States
    • Solar Panel Costs By State
      • Solar Panel Costs in California
      • Solar Panel Costs in Texas
      • Solar Panel Costs in New York
      • Solar Panel Costs in Florida
      • See All States
    • Value of Solar by State
      • Is Solar Worth It In California?
      • Is Solar Worth It in Texas?
      • Is Solar Worth It New York?
      • Is Solar Worth It In Florida?
      • See All States
    • Company Reviews
      • Tesla Solar Review
      • Sunrun Solar Review
      • SunPower Solar Review
      • Vivint Solar Review
      • See All Companies
    • Common Solar Questions
      • Can You Get Free Solar Panels?
      • Does Solar Increase Home Value?
      • What’re The Best Solar Batteries?
      • Can You Finance Solar?
      • Where To Buy Solar Panels?
      • Payback On Solar Panels?
    • Solar Resources
      • Interactive Solar Calculator
      • Federal Solar Tax Credit
      • Best Solar Panels For Most Homes
      • Tesla Solar Roof Review
      • Cheapest Solar Panels
    • Companies Compared
      • SunPower vs Tesla Solar
      • SunRun vs Tesla Solar
      • SunRun vs SunPower
      • SunPower vs Momentum Solar
      • SunPower vs ADT Solar

The best of EcoWatch right in your inbox. Sign up for our email newsletter!

    • About EcoWatch
    • Contact EcoWatch
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Learn About Solar Energy
    Facebook 558k Twitter 222k Instagram 52k
    EcoWatch
    • About EcoWatch
    • Contact EcoWatch
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Learn About Solar Energy
    Facebook 558k Twitter 222k Instagram 52k
    Home Policy

    Paris Votes to Ban E-Scooter Rentals

    By: Paige Bennett
    Published: April 3, 2023
    Edited by Chris McDermott
    Facebook icon Twitter icon Pinterest icon Email icon
    A man rides a Lime electric scooter in front of the Louvre in Paris
    A man rides a Lime electric scooter in front of the Louvre pyramid and the Louvre museum in Paris, France on March 29, 2023. Chesnot / Getty Images
    Why you can trust us

    Founded in 2005 as an Ohio-based environmental newspaper, EcoWatch is a digital platform dedicated to publishing quality, science-based content on environmental issues, causes, and solutions.

    Facebook icon Twitter icon Pinterest icon Email icon

    Paris held a citywide referendum Sunday on whether or not to ban e-scooter rentals in the city. While only about 8% of eligible voters turned out, nearly 90% of respondents voted for a ban.

    For some, e-scooters can provide a green mode of transportation for short distances. But these scooters have also posed several issues. They can be unsafe, with rising cases of crashes and 24 e-scooter-related deaths in 2021, as Reuters reported. The deputy of transport in Paris, David Belliard, noted that there also have been hundreds of additional non-fatal accidents involving rental e-scooters.

    More From EcoWatch
    • A Brief History of Solar Energy
    • The Best Solar Panels for Mobile Homes
    • How to Fix Underperforming Solar Panels

    The scooters create “a feeling of overall insecurity in the public space, notably for the most vulnerable people, I’m thinking of seniors or people with disabilities,” Belliard told The Associated Press. “There are a few benefits but what I see today is that the costs are greater.”

    Anne Hidalgo, mayor of Paris, announced the referendum in January and expressed her own interest in banning e-scooters. 

    “It’s very expensive — five euros (£4.40; $5.40) for 10 minutes — it’s not very sustainable, and above all, it’s the cause of a lot of accidents,” Hidalgo said of the e-scooter business.

    The ban will apply only to rental e-scooters, not privately owned scooters.

    Paris was one of the first cities to adopt e-scooters, BBC reported, but untrained riders and tourists unfamiliar with local traffic laws who drive fast and dangerously through streets and sidewalks posed threats to the safety of both the riders and pedestrians.

    Another criticism of e-scooters in Paris and beyond is that riders don’t park them properly, leaving them blocking sidewalks and other pathways. While the city instated a ban and fines on parking scooters on pavements, many riders still continued to improperly return the rental scooters after riding them.

    Some riders also litter with e-scooters. Euronews reported that Swans’ Island in Paris has been nicknamed Scooters’ Island by residents after finding scooters thrown into waterways.

    “We’ve pulled out at least 170 over three years or so,” local magnet fisher Raphaël told Euronews. “I don’t know what they want to do with them, but I don’t see the point of throwing them in the water.”

    One study found that e-scooters, while responsible for less emissions than cars, produce more emissions per passenger mile than other modes of transit, including diesel buses (with a high number of passengers), bikes or e-bikes or traveling on foot.

    However, critics argued that the rental e-scooters can provide more accessible, sustainable transit options for people who don’t live close to a metro stop. Garance Lefèvre, director of public policy for e-scooter company Lime, also told The Associated Press that the e-scooters can provide a safer transportation option for people traveling late at night.

    Three rental e-scooter companies — Lime, Dott and Tier — have licenses to operate in the city, but these licenses are due to expire in August. The e-scooters will be banned beginning September 1. The e-scooter rental companies expressed hope in working with the city to set stricter regulations on the vehicles, rather than moving forward with the outright ban.

    Subscribe to get exclusive updates in our daily newsletter!

      By signing up, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, and to receive electronic communications from EcoWatch Media Group, which may include marketing promotions, advertisements and sponsored content.

      Paige Bennett

      Based in Los Angeles, Paige is a writer who is passionate about sustainability. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Ohio University and holds a certificate in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies. She also specialized in sustainable agriculture while pursuing her undergraduate degree.
      Facebook icon Twitter icon Pinterest icon Email icon

      Read More

      River Seine in Paris Reopens for Public Swimming for the First Time in 100 Years
      After more than a century, a ban on swimming in
      By Paige Bennett
      Certain Gut Microbes Found to Absorb Ingested PFAS: Study
      Our gut bacteria — collectively known as the “gut microbiome”
      By Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
      Higher Levels of PFAS Found in Waterways Downstream From Wastewater Treatment Plants: Report
      Recent research from Waterkeeper Alliance warns that 98% of tested
      By Paige Bennett

      Subscribe to get exclusive updates in our daily newsletter!

        By signing up, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, and to receive electronic communications from EcoWatch Media Group, which may include marketing promotions, advertisements and sponsored content.

        Latest Articles

        • River Seine in Paris Reopens for Public Swimming for the First Time in 100 Years
          by Paige Bennett
          July 7, 2025
        • Facing Climate Anxiety With Visual Comedy: ‘World Without End’ Graphic Artist Christophe Blain
          by Craig Thompson
          July 5, 2025
        • Certain Gut Microbes Found to Absorb Ingested PFAS: Study
          by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
          July 3, 2025
        • Higher Levels of PFAS Found in Waterways Downstream From Wastewater Treatment Plants: Report
          by Paige Bennett
          July 3, 2025
        • UN Climate Expert Urges Criminalization of Fossil Fuel Disinformation to Protect Basic Human Rights
          by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
          July 2, 2025
        • EPA Employees Sign ‘Declaration of Dissent’ Over Trump Administration Policies
          by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
          July 1, 2025
        • Threatened Heath Fritillary Butterflies See Major Population Increase in England
          by Paige Bennett
          July 1, 2025
        • Personal Care Products Like Shampoo Can Harm Aquatic Life: Study
          by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
          July 1, 2025
        EcoWatch

        The best of EcoWatch right in your inbox. Sign up for our email newsletter!

          • Climate Climate
          • Animals Animals
          • Health + Wellness Health + Wellness
          • Insights + Opinion Insights + Opinion
          • Adventure Adventure
          • Oceans Oceans
          • Business Business
          • Solar Solar
          • About EcoWatch
          • Contact EcoWatch
          • EcoWatch Reviews
          • Terms of Use
          • Privacy Policy
          • Learn About Solar Energy
          • Learn About Deregulated Energy
          • EcoWatch UK
          Follow Us
          Facebook 558k
          Twitter 222k
          Instagram 52k
          Subscribe Subscribe

          Experts for a healthier planet and life.

          Mentioned by:
          Learn more
          • Privacy Policy
          • Terms of Use
          • Cookie Preferences
          • Do Not Sell My Information
          © 2025 EcoWatch. All Rights Reserved.

          Advertiser Disclosure

          Our editorial team is committed to creating independent and objective content focused on helping our readers make informed decisions. To help support these efforts we receive compensation from companies that advertise with us.

          The compensation we receive from these companies may impact how and where products appear on this site. This compensation does not influence the recommendations or advice our editorial team provides within our content. We do not include all companies, products or offers that may be available.