Self-service electric scooters are disappearing from Paris, which will change

A few months ago, they were queens. Today, they are rare and from tomorrow, Friday September 1, 2023, they will no longer be in Paris. Electric scooters are indeed living their last hours in the capital. And their operators are taking the latest models off the streets.

This is particularly felt when looking for one. A matter that takes some time. And that’s okay. While there were nearly 15,000 in a normal situation now over, they would be less than 1,000 at the end of August.

What will become of the Parisian scooters?

Operators have thus removed almost all of them from their fleet. Lime initiated this operation for its 5,000 machines at the beginning of August. The company intends to redeploy them in other towns, such as in France in Lille. Copenhagen, London and cities in Germany should also benefit from these scooters excluded from Paris.

On the Dott side, the withdrawal operation began in the middle of July. 500 of these scooters left the capital every week. What allow him to get ahead. So much so that it no longer counts. These will also be redeployed in other cities, particularly in France and Bordeaux. Others will have the chance to travel, as far as Tel Aviv in Israel or Belgium.

As for Tier, the third operator, part of the fleet will only cover a few kilometres. The latter will indeed remain in Île-de-France. This will concern 80 municipalities located around Marne-la-Vallée, or Saint-Germain-en-Laye for example. Other of these machines will come up against the competition abroad, notably in Germany in Berlin or in Warsaw in Poland.

What will they be replaced by?

We are in Paris. So there is no match. The bicycle will take the place of the scooters. The three operators mentioned above intend to develop this activity, since the disappearance of self-service scooters will leave them with a great void.

Enough to promise a few more self-service bicycles in the coming months in the streets of the capital. Even though 21,000 Vélib’ will be available in 2024. To this will be added 20,000 models operated by private companies. To see how it will evolve.

What about freed up parking spaces?

These new bikes will no doubt be invited to be parked in the spaces formerly dedicated to scooters. Evidenced by David Belliard, deputy EELV at the town hall of Paris, in charge of the transformation of public space, mobility and roads, at the Parisian :

“Almost all the spaces will be reserved for parking bicycles. They will be necessary because we are betting on strengthening the supply of cycles, in particular on the occasion of the Olympic Games.”

This trend can also be explained by the nature of these places. Often located near protected passages, visibility must be maintained for pedestrians. This reduces the possibilities linked to the reconversion of these areas. However, trees could also be installed on some of these sites, when possible.

Enough to profoundly change the face of a city that will no longer have self-service scooters. Remember that this decision was taken following a vote organized by the municipality, in which Parisians could take part on Sunday April 2. The latter had spoken out at nearly 90% against these machines in their city.

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