Starting in September, Prague 1 has come to an understanding with electric scooter operators to implement new regulations for parking scooters in the city center. Vojtěch Ryvola, the city district’s councillor for transport (from ANO), revealed the details of this agreement. The plan is to restrict scooter parking to designated areas only, with around 140 allocated spots that can each accommodate up to 10 scooters. Additionally, a monthly fee will be collected from the operators for each scooter they have in circulation. This arrangement has been successfully negotiated with all four vehicle operators, namely Lime, Bolt, Nextbike, and Rekola.
The decision to introduce these measures has been motivated by the excessive criticism faced by scooter operators Lime and Bolt. Their customers have often left scooters in inconvenient locations, obstructing sidewalks and causing other disturbances. Currently, e-scooters can be left anywhere within the operators’ designated zones, but this will change with the new policy.
The city hall has already constructed approximately 40 of the designated scooter parking spots, and they intend to have 70 in place by the end of the holiday season. Most of these locations will be strategically placed in “traffic shadows” near pedestrian crossings. An additional 70 virtual spots will be established, without explicit signage, where scooters will not interfere with pedestrian flow.
Importantly, the objective is not to entirely banish scooters and other shared transport vehicles from the city center, as they serve as an eco-friendly alternative to cars. Instead, the goal is to create order and tidiness. This verbal agreement has been favored over previous unenforceable memoranda, as its success matters more than mere documentation.
According to Ryvola, during the season, there are currently around 2,500 scooters in the downtown area, but this number is expected to reduce to about 1,500 once the new agreement is implemented. The operators have also agreed to comply with this decrease. The next step will involve charging a monthly fee of CZK 25 per scooter or bike.
Addressing the issue of dangerous riding by some users on pavements, the agreement includes a requirement for a noticeable sign on the handlebars of all scooters, clearly stating that riding on pavements is prohibited. Additionally, the city’s police force is actively penalizing offenders to address this concern.
Prague 2 has previously reached a similar agreement with scooter operators, focusing on designated parking spots. Furthermore, the transport councillors of Prague districts 1 to 10 have requested deputy mayor Zdeněk Hřibo (from the Pirates party) to prepare a city-wide agreement to establish a uniform system for scooter parking and regulations throughout Prague.
