B.C. launching four-year study on e-scooter safety

A local startup says it's seeing a growing demand for e-scooters in Vancouver.

VICTORIA -

The British Columbia government has launched another study to decide how e-scooters fit into the provincial transportation network.

The four-year safety review will start next April and replaces an e-scooter pilot project that began in 2021, which saw the machines tested in 13 communities.

A statement from the province says the new review allows for the collection of better health and safety data, which is needed to address questions about the safe integration of scooters into the transport system.

Transportation Minister Rob Fleming says the scooters are part of an ongoing shift toward electric personal mobility that is cutting emissions.

He says the review will make it easier for local governments to test the e-scooters on their own roads.

Data collected for the earlier pilot project found 48 per cent of 600,000 trips by e-scooters and other micromobility devices used in Kelowna over two years had replaced trips by vehicles.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 1, 2023.