The legislation aspects of the emergence of electric scooters in urban transportation

Abstract

Budapest has experienced the emergence of shared or private e-scooters as part of a larger global transformation in urban environments and mobility systems. Following an increase in the number of emergencies in recent years, many Hungarian municipalities have agreed with shared e-scooter operators to implement a set of temporal and speed limitations. However, there is still a requirement to understand the dynamics of socio-technical transitions involving e-scooters and to establish the necessary adaptive governance processes. This article focuses on the legislative foundation required for government regulation. In our exploratory research, we conducted three focus group discussions with non-users in March 2022 to examine issues related to public regulation. Using the key concepts they mentioned most often, we have created a nomological network around the phenomenon of electric micromobility, focusing now on the legislative aspect. According to respondents, the current key challenges are the lack of regulation on the maximum speed of electric scooters, the number of people allowed to ride on a scooter at the same time, whether mobile phones can be used while scootering, and where the e-scooters can be legally parked and where they can be safely approached.