Bucharest approves new rules for rental e-scooters, including an 18+ age limit

Bucharest's General Council has approved a new regulation for rental e-scooters, setting a minimum age of 18 and tighter rules on where the scooters can be ridden and left. The vote took place on Tuesday and passed with 44 votes in favour and 3 abstentions, according to G4Media, citing Mediafax.

The rules target app-based rental firms such as Lime, Bolt, Bird and Splash. They do not cover privately owned scooters, which remain subject to the Highway Code. They are due to take effect 60 days after approval.

Who can rent

Operators must check users' age through an ID document or electronic identification and block anyone who does not qualify. There is one exception: people aged 16 and over who hold a licence in category AM, A1 or B1 may still rent.

Where you can ride

Riders must use a cycle lane where there is one. Otherwise they may use only roads with a 50 km/h speed limit. Riding on pavements is banned, except on cycle lanes built into them, as is riding in park alleys and public gardens. Carrying two people on one scooter is not allowed, nor is riding under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Using a phone or headphones while riding is also prohibited.

Operators must use GPS and geofencing to restrict riding and parking in the Old Town (Centrul Vechi). The city can add other restricted zones later. The regulation also provides for restrictions in dangerous weather such as ice or snow.

Parking

Scooters may not be left at public transport stops, pedestrian crossings, junctions, green spaces, cycle lanes, or on the carriageway. They also must not block access ramps for people with disabilities or tactile paving. On pavements at least two metres wide, parking is allowed only if a clear, continuous walkway of at least 1.5 metres remains.

Operators have up to 120 minutes after being notified to collect or move a badly parked scooter. If it blocks access or poses an immediate danger, they must act at once.

Costs for operators

Companies will pay an annual authorisation fee of 5,000 lei, plus 0.75 lei per day for each scooter operating on public land. The city can cap the number of scooters. Fines for breaches range from 1,000 lei up to 10,000 lei for operating without a valid authorisation, according to G4Media.

Mayor Ciprian Ciucu said he is not proposing to remove scooters from Bucharest for now, because of the city's public transport problems. A representative of the rental companies warned the rules could push people to buy their own scooters instead.