Legislation on electric scooters, the timeline: all the milestones in recent years

 

The  Highway Code presented gaps in the matter and in fact ended up penalizing or prohibiting the use of micro-mobility vehicles, so new rules were necessary .

1992 - Micromobility: what the Italian Highway Code says

Precisely because electric scooter UK are a recent innovation, the Italian Highway Code, enacted in 1992 (therefore now 27 years ago), did not provide for them. However, in Article 190 there are provisions regulating the  behavior of pedestrians . Paragraph 8 states that circulation by means of boards, skates or speed accelerators is prohibited on the carriageway . Also in paragraph 9 there is a reference to gait accelerators: it is forbidden to move with boards, skates or gait accelerators on spaces reserved for pedestrians (sidewalks and pedestrian areas).As you can see, there is no precise reference to electric scooters (or hoverboards and the like) in the Highway Code, but, from what can also be seen from subsequent legislative provisions, electric scooters with a maximum speed of less than 6 Km / h can be assimilated to gait accelerators. So in fact it would be forbidden to use it on the roadway. The yellow-green government intervened precisely to update this legislation.

April 2019 - The Budget Law and the announcement of the implementing decree

As often happens in the world of innovation, the need to establish ad hoc legislation came a posteriori, after the emergence of the phenomenon . However it arrived. The rules on electric micromobility were provided for by the 2019 Budget Law , after which the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (MIT) drafted a draft implementing decree , which it shared with various institutions, in order to receive useful comments before final publication. in the Official Gazette After electric micro mobility was introduced in the 2019 Budget Law, on April 8, 2019, MIT announced that the implementing decree to start testing electric micromobility in cities was ready. "It will now be shared - read a note published on the ministry's website - with the other administrations involved and with local authorities and we hope that it will be definitively in force in time to start testing electric scooters, segways, monowheels and hoverboards in the cities. from summer 2019 ".

“MIT - continued the press release - has done careful work on the text of the implementing decree, also accepting various requests received from Anci. Therefore, a rapid process of sharing by the other institutions is hoped, so as to make a new important step forward towards a truly green mobility that will allow us to offer new means of transport with a view to intermodality with zero emissions. As established by the budget law, the mayors will define the areas in which to start the experimentation and regulate the methods of use of the vehicles.

In the following days, the managers of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport sent the draft decree relating to the experimentation of electric micro-mobility to various institutions in order to share the text and receive useful comments to improve it before publication in the Official Gazette.

12 July 2019 - The Toninelli decree on electric scooters

Publication on July 12, 2019 . The decree signed by Toninelli grants municipalities the possibility of  starting the experimentation of electric scooters, segways, monowheels and hoverboards in the cities . It provides for  the green light of road tests exclusively in urban areas and in compliance with certain conditions, some of which have already received criticism from various quarters. For example, for minors who travel by scooter it is mandatory to have an AM license (the one for the moped) and the Municipalities are obliged to place new signs to indicate the roads where they can circulate with these vehicles. But let's see the process of the provision and what are the new rules.

From July 27, 2019, Italian municipalities are given one year to regulate the circulation of electric scooters,   segways, hoverboards and monowheels. Milan,  Turin, Rimini, Cattolica, Pesaro and Verona are among the first cities to adhere to the new legislation. In particular, Milan publishes three notices of expression of interest for sharing mobility , while in Turin the experimentation starts on 13 November.

27 July 2019 - The ball goes to the Municipalities

July 27 is the date that gives the municipalities the kick-off: a specific resolution of the City Council is needed to approve the plan for the experimentation of electric micro-mobility, regulating not only the circulation but also the parking. Municipalities must also install new signs to indicate the roads where you can travel with scooters or other. Municipalities must pay particular attention to the establishment of rental services for shared devices, with the obligation of insurance coverage for the performance of the service itself. The trial can be authorized within 12 months from the date of entry into force of the decree, and cannot last more than 24 months from the aforementioned date, with a minimum of 12 months. Municipalities must notify MIT of their willingness to access the trial within 30 days of the adoption of the measures, and a report on the results achieved must be sent within three months of the end of the trial.

December 2019 - Electric scooters equivalent to bicycles

In December 2019,  an amendment to the budget law proposed by the Senator of Italy Viva  Eugenio Comincini established the equation of electric scooters with bicycles.   The amendment provides that scooters complying with  the power and speed limits (motor power 500 w and max speed 20 km / h)  indicated in the MIT decree of 4 June 2019 are equated to  cycles , regulated by the previous legislative decree of 30 April 1992. Municipalities will therefore be given the  opportunity to make sharing scooters circulate more simply, as well as citizens will be given the right to use both their own means and to rely on the services made available by operators in the sector without the risk of incurring penalties. Thanks to the new commitment made by the government, in fact, these vehicles will be able to circulate on the road as if they were bicycles and  therefore be included in the Highway Code.

March 2020: new rules on micromobility in force

On 1 March 2020 , with the conversion law of the Milleproroghe decree law , the new rules on the circulation of electric scooters come into force . Today the scooter can be used throughout the national territory, it is equated to cycles and bicycles, it can circulate on urban roads with a limit of 50 km per hour and on cycle paths. Nell ' Article 33a  of Milleproroghe decree approved by the Senate at the beginning of 2020 (here  the full text of the Decree ) contains new rules on micro-mobility.

- Today the scooter can be used throughout the national territory

- It is equated to cycles and bicycles

- The new rules provide that electric scooters can circulate on urban roads with a limit of 50 km per hour and on cycle paths parallel to extra-urban roads.

- Electric scooters must have 500 watts of maximum power.

- As far as speed is concerned, you can proceed at a maximum of 20 km per hour where 50 km per hour are foreseen, while on the cycle paths it is not possible to exceed 6 km per hour.

- Only people over 14 years of age can drive electric scooters

- The helmet is mandatory for all minors

- Lights are mandatory in front and behind

- The fines are equivalent to those intended for those who violate the highway code when cycling.

Meanwhile, companies such as Helbiz (sharing electric scooters) have decided to increase the fleet and have started a franchising business by betting on a greater use of these vehicles during the pandemic.

But let's see in detail what the decree that gave the green light to the circulation of electric scooters in cities provides.

Micromobility: focus on the Toninelli decree

But let's read carefully, in all its details, the decree that sets the rules for the circulation of these vehicles, which, as mentioned above, was signed by the then Minister of Transport Danilo Toninelli,   published in the Official Gazette on Friday 12 July  and entered  into force on Saturday 27 July 2019 .

In fact, several months earlier in some cities, Milan in the lead, the various micro-vehicles circulated freely . The decree represented the official kick-off for the Municipalities.

HERE THE TEXT OF THE DECREE ON MICROMOBILITY

What the Toninelli decree says about micromobility

The experimentation of micro - mobility vehicles  , which can start once the Municipalities have approved,  allows the circulation in the city of these vehicles not provided for by the Code and therefore prohibited until then . In the text of the law it is established that  Cheap Electric Scooter UK, hoverboards, segways and monowheels will be able to circulate in the urban area,  subject to municipal resolution, on  pedestrian areas, pedestrian and bicycle paths, cycle paths in their own seat and on a reserved lane, areas at 30 km / h. roads with a speed limit of 30 km / h . The experimentation, which must be requested by individual cities within one year of the entry into force of the MIT regulation, may last at least one year and maximum two years.

New rules for electric scooters: circulation only in the city

Road circulation is  permitted only in urban areas and limited to certain road infrastructures.

All means admitted to experimentation

Only electric scooters are allowed to experiment ; segways, personal transport devices that exploit an innovative combination of information technology, electronics and mechanics; monowheel, unicycles with a single wheel similar to the unicycle , in which the driver generally places his feet between the two wheels; and hoverboards,  vehicles with two parallel wheels which, by means of gyroscopic sensors and appropriate on-board electronics, are able to keep themselves in horizontal equilibrium with people on board without the need for additional supports.

Vehicle lighting and engine power

These micro-mobility vehicles must be equipped with an acoustic signal and with an electric motor with a maximum nominal power not exceeding 500watt . It is essential that the micro-vehicles are equipped with lighting: from half an hour after sunset, during the night and during the day, when the weather conditions require lighting, the vehicles without a fixed white or yellow light and red reflectors at the back or with a steady red light, they cannot be used but only carried or carried by hand. In other words, circulation in the dark and during the day in case of poor visibility will be prohibited for micro vehicles without lights. Furthermore, if you travel on the road or on a cycle path, there will be the obligation to have a  high visibility reflective vest or shoulder straps in the evening and at night for the Segway and the electric scooter.

Electric scooters: new rules on speed

Devices capable of developing speeds above 20 km / h must be equipped with a speed regulator, while in order to be used in urban areas, through the regulator,  they cannot exceed the speed of 6 km / h . Furthermore, only scooters and segways (in a range between 6 and 20 kilometers per hour) are allowed to travel on protected cycle paths, in reserved lanes and in zones 30, but not monowheel and hoverboards. All devices must have the CE marking, in accordance with the European directive 2006/42 / EC

Who will be able to drive micro-mobility vehicles

All micro-mobility electric vehicles can only be driven by drivers of legal age , unless the minor is in possession of an AM license (the one required for the moped).

The transport of other passengers or things and any form of towing is prohibited. A regular course must be maintained and abrupt maneuvers and acrobatics must be avoided. The provisions of art. 182 of the Highway Code (circulation of cycles), when cycle paths or mixed pedestrian and cycle paths are traveled. The speed limits indicated in the decree do not apply to electric vehicles supplied to traffic police bodies. There will be no obligation to wear a helmet.

Electric scooters in the Istat basket

The  electric and hybrid electric cars, and electric scooter , have made their entry in the basket Istat 2020. The update of the goods and services included in the basket takes into account  news emerged in household spending habits,  of ' evolution of standards and classifications  and, in some cases, enriches the range of products that represent  consolidated consumption . Electric scooters are therefore among the new entries in the basket, along with some other products and services such as  Sushi take away and Meal delivery .

Electric scooters in Milan

Suspension after an accident

From Saturday 27 July 2019 Milan started the experimentation. After an accident, and the opening of a file in the Public Prosecutor's Office, on 14 August the Municipality ordered the sharing companies to withdraw the electric scooters from the market pending further measures. Up to that moment it had given the green light to the circulation of vehicles but had not authorized the companies that deal with their shared rental . On 23 August 2019,  the municipal administration brought together the operators of the sector around a table. The main issues were discussed (sharing of guidelines, definition of parameters, focus on the need to combine safety and service to the citizen ...) in view of the issuance of the public notice for expressions of interest for companies that want to activate services in Milan sharing of scooters, segways, hoverboards, skateboards and single wheels. However, not only the electric scooter companies were present at the table , but also other shared micro-mobility operators (car sharing, motorcycle sharing,  etc.). Kids Scooter for Sale, This is because the Councilor for Mobility of the Municipality of Milan, Marco Granelli , aims at  an integration between the various shared media, with the ultimate goal of inviting people to leave their vehicles at home and thus contribute to a greener and smarter city.

Milan: three calls for sharing mobility

The words of Granelli were followed by the facts: from Tuesday  29 October  the companies or subjects that manage fleets of vehicles such as  electric scooters , but also electric scooters and free-flow bicycles,  were able to present their  expressions of interest , or to apply to be chosen. by the Municipality to operate on the territory.

Milan: three winners and an appeal to the TAR

Three calls have been issued - and not one - precisely with a view to integrating shared media that Granelli was talking about. The winners of the tender for the circulation of electric scooters were  Bit, Wind Mobility and Helbiz. The decision was announced in December 2019 . The three companies have undertaken, within sixty days, to put on the road a maximum of 500-700 scooters each, for a maximum total of 2,250 vehicles in the city. But Lime , who had been excluded, filed an appeal with the TAR , effectively blocking the start of the service again.