The citizens of Paris voted this Sunday by an overwhelming majority of 89% against rental scooters, in the referendum organized by the City Council on the continuation of that service.
Turnout was just 7.9% among the nearly 1.4 million Parisians who could vote, according to data released by the City Council.
Despite the fact that there were only twenty voting centers in the entire city, there were queues for a good part of the day, in which the citizens interviewed almost unanimously indicated their opposition
The vote was technically consultative, but the mayoress, the socialist Anne Hidalgo, had assured that the result would follow, so the 15,000 vehicles that the three authorized companies currently have on the streets (Lime, Tier and Voi), will have to be withdrawn. by August 31, when its five-year authorization expires.
The companies that operate in Paris had organized a campaign in favor of maintaining the service for which they recruited influential people, although it was far from being enough.
The municipal initiative was taken due to the increase in the accident rate of these devices (459 accidents in 2022, with three deaths and 426 injuries, which is twice as many injuries as in 2019, before the pandemic).
In addition, the inhabitants of the city have widely complained about the increasing number of dangerous and uncivil behaviors of users (also of private scooters), as well as the fact that they are left parked or thrown anywhere, without respecting the zones of Parking established by companies and City Council.
