Waka Kotahi declared in 2018 that e-scooters were not designated to be a motor vehicle. This temporary declaration has allowed them to be used and parked on footpaths. OraTaiao strongly recommends that an extension to E-scooter (Declaration Not to be Motor Vehicles) Notice 2018 should not be provided at the present time, for three main reasons.
The speed differential between pedestrians and footpath users creates a hazard for both pedestrians and e-scooter users. An additional hazard is created by the random depositing of shared e-scooters on footpaths and within cycleways. This is a particularly important risk for disabled and blind pedestrians. Although e-scooters should give an additional option for mode shift away from unhealthy forms of transport such as private car use, at present the evidence is that the mode-shift comes from healthier forms of transport than e-scooters, especially walking.
Our submission, prepared by OraTaiao Co-convenor Dr Dermot Coffey, is available here.