A European city has banned a mode of transport popular with tourists after a significant number of accidents were reported in the past year. Brussels will remove shared e-scooters from its streets as of January 2027, with authorities in the Brussels-Capital Region announcing the decision last week. Currently, two operators, Bolt and Dott, provide shared e-scooters in the Belgian capital, but their licenses will not be renewed when they expire at the end of 2026, according to the Brussels Times.
Safety Concerns and Nuisance
Authorities cited safety concerns and the nuisance caused to residents. Brussels mobility minister Elke Van den Brandt and minister-president Boris Dilliès issued a joint statement, calling shared e-scooters a "growing nuisance to other road users" and noting that 666 accidents involved e-scooters in 2025, a 26% increase from the previous year. They also highlighted that rental scooters were used for criminal purposes, including involvement in 25 shootings in Brussels last year.
Boris Dilliès said: "The decision to exclude self-service scooters from the Brussels urban landscape is part of a clear and consistent policy. Often synonymous with disorder, self-service scooters are a source of nuisance, cause serious injuries, clutter the streets and are, unfortunately, increasingly being used by organised criminals. Self-service bicycles, on the other hand, remain for us an essential part of a mobility policy."
Industry Response
In a statement, e-scooter rental firm Bolt argued: "When scooters are the subject of public debate, whether regarding road safety or parking, private and shared scooters are almost always lumped together, even though they are fundamentally different. Banning [shared scooters] will not stop people from getting around. It will drive users towards private, unregulated, untraceable and genuinely dangerous scooters, or towards more polluting modes of transport. Neither of these scenarios serves Brussels’ objectives regarding safety, congestion or the climate."
European Context
Brussels follows other European cities such as Paris, Madrid, and Prague in banning shared e-scooters. Since the announcement, the Benelux Union, a partnership between Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg, has called on the European Commission to create a single framework for all EU countries. This would facilitate consistent regulations and prevent unsafe vehicles from being hired. Benelux pointed out inconsistent safety standards among member states, with some vehicles not suitable for public roads.
In the UK, privately owned e-scooters are banned from public roads and pavements, with legal use only on private land. Some rental schemes operate in London, Birmingham, and other cities under strict criteria, including a speed limit of 12.5 mph, a minimum age of 18, and a requirement for a provisional driving license.
