Shared electric scooter trials to kick off in NSW this week
The NSW Government will this week kick of its shared e-scooter trials in four popular western Sydney locations in a bid to safely integrate the popular tech product into the community.
Starting Saturday the trials will roll out at Western Sydney Parklands’ Bungarribee Park, Lizard Log and Shale Hills and the Australian Botanic Garden at Mount Annan.
Minister for Active Transport Rob Stokes said the trail will including learnings from other Australian states and around the world to put the safest and most effective measures in place.
The trail is for shared e-scooters. The use of privately-owned e-scooters is still prohibited.
“Like any new technology, e-scooters present us with enormous opportunities and several challenges to address before we can permanently permit them on our streets,” Mr Stokes said.
“This is why the NSW Government is committed to trialling them and why our parklands are the perfect location to start ahead of trials across multiple council areas.
“The trial is restricted to shared scheme e- scooters, so we can guarantee the safety parameters of each device,” he said.
During the trial e-scooters will not be allowed on footpaths with speeds limited to 20km/h in bike lanes, up to 50km/h on roads and 10km/h on shared paths.
Riders will also need to wear a helmet and must be aged 16-years or older.
Mr Stokes says councils can formally apply to hold a 12-month trial with selected e-scooter shared scheme providers in their area.
“We’ve taken our time to get this trial right, which is why we’re not rushing into rolling this trial out to interested council areas immediately,” Mr Stokes said.
“Each shortlisted council will have to meet the requirements of the trial and undergo a safety assessment before being approved.”
Visitors to these trial areas will be able to hire a shared scooter through the provider’s app which will show a map where they are located to hire and ride.
Applications to be part of the e-scooter shared scheme trial are open until September 30 this year.