Prague moves to end use of shared e-scooters after history of tourist abuse
Prague plans to disallow the parking of shared electric scooters under its upcoming shared transport system. Residents of the city center have long complained about their use, particularly by tourists, leading to the move to drastically limit their use.
Prague has been preparing a new system for regulating shared transport vehicles since 2024. It will be based on contracts between the Technical Road Administration (TSK) and the operators of shared electric vehicles, which will only be permitted to be deposited in designated public spaces. If users leave them elsewhere, TSK will remove them.
Deputy Mayor Zdeněk Hřib held a press conference on Monday where he explained the move by the city:
“The problems associated with shared electric scooters here in Prague have been ongoing for a long time. Essentially, what happened is that the support the city should be providing for ecological and sustainable urban mobility started being confused with a tourist attraction. A deadline will be set from the moment this is approved and announced, by which the operators will have to clear their shared transport vehicles from those areas.”
TSK Director Filip Hájek also told reporters that anyone without a contract with TSK will not be allowed to operate or park scooters, and any such scooters will have to be removed. Hřib added that, in theory, operators could arrange their own parking areas through agreements with private entities, but this would be very complicated and the city does not expect it to happen.
The City Council is expected to approve TSK to use the spaces designated for bike parking by the end of May, after which the city can enter into contracts with individual operators. They will pay 25 crowns per month for parking for each of the bikes or e-bikes operated.
In the case of a postponement, the operator will be fined CZK 100 and given a deadline for correction; if he fails to do so in time, the fine will increase to CZK 1,000, and TSK will remove and release the scooter only after the fine has been paid. Prague residents will also be able to use the reserved spaces for their bicycles.
After approval by the council and the conclusion of contracts, Hřib said the electric scooter operators will be given a deadline to remove the vehicles from the streets. The deputy mayor said that they do not expect users to violate this in any significant way because of similar experience in different major cities. Hájek added that the system will probably be checked mostly manually by TSK this year, while from next year it should work automatically using GPS data from bike providers.
Criticism of electric scooters
The reason for the omission of electric scooters from the system is their long-standing criticism by residents and districts in the center of Prague. Critics particularly dislike leaving them in places where they get in the way and riding them on sidewalks endangering pedestrians. Hájek added that there are almost twice as many violations of electric scooters as bicycles, almost five times as many fines.
Prague 1 has wanted a ban on shared e-scooters for a long time and has asked the city council to introduce it in the form of a municipal ordinance. On Monday, Hřib said that such a solution would have to apply to all scooters, including those owned by residents and with which there are no problems.
