No prosecutions for the illegal modification of electric scooters a year on from legislation
The legislation prohibiting various modifications to e-scooters was brought in last May in the Road Traffic (Electric Scooters) Regulations 2024.
Within the legislation, it sets out that a person may not modify an electric scooter in a manner that compromises the safe use of the vehicle; so that the characteristics no longer correspond to the manufacturer's design specifications and information on the manufacturer's plate; or in a manner that enables the driver to alter upwards the maximum design speed, net power, or continuous rated pow.
Fine Gael TD Barry Ward raised concerns about the lack of prosecutions in relation to illegal modifications on the vehicles with Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan in a parliamentary question.
In response, O'Callaghan said that no prosecutions have been recorded for the offence.
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Dún Laoghaire TD Barry Ward, who describes himself as a regular e-scooter user, said that anyone who had spent time walking in their local area or in Dublin city centre 'will have seen countless examples of the use of e-scooters and e-bikes in an anti-social and dangerous way, many of which have been modified to be used at greater speeds'.
He said that O'Callaghan's confirmation that there have been no prosecutions shows that enforcement in the area has not caught up to the regulations.
Last year's regulations state that if a person uses an electric scooter in a public place that does not comply with the regulations, the owner of the scooter is prescribed under the Road Traffic Act 1961 as committing an offence of non-compliance.
A pilot scheme established by gardaí has begun to utilise
a speed testing kit to establish whether an electric scooter in use in public is compliant with the speed limit of 20 km/h
. Gardaí confirmed that they were planning on purchasing
'a lot more' e-scooter and e-bike speed testing kits
, which will be distributed to garda stations across the country.
There has been a surge in seizures of electric scooters that do not meet Irish regulations in recent months, but there appears to be a disconnect between seizures and prosecutions.
Ward added that the modification of electric scooters is not only dangerous for the operator but for other road users and pedestrians.
'If it is proven that the device has been modified, this needs to be prosecuted.'
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