Starting August 30, e-scooters and other small electric vehicles will be officially recognized as such. To address proposed regulations for their usage, the Committee of Administrative Police held a media briefing, QazMonitor reports citing the committee’s press service.
Chief Inspector for Special Assignments, Aktoty Boranova, said that before the recent amendments, e-scooters were 'outside of the legal domain'. Now, the authorities have established requirements for their safe operation, which include rules for the transportation of passengers, crossing crosswalks, wearing reflective items, and other personal road safety measures.
In case of detecting offenses, current legislation holds e-scooter drivers accountable under Article 593 of the Administrative Code, incurring a fine of 5 Monthly Calculation Indexes (MCI), equivalent to ₸17,250, or Article 620 of the Administrative Code, resulting in a warning or a fine of 3 MCI (₸10,350).
"Undoubtedly, in the future, considering the practical application of the new provisions of the law, the need to introduce an independent section [for e-scooter offenses] will be considered," added Boranova.
She specified that for this purpose, together with local administrations and scooter-sharing companies, the committee proposes the following regulations:
Regulation of traffic speed on sidewalks, roads, and bike lanes
Registering the identity of e-scooter users, as well as the date and place of usage
Dividing cities into zones with full-on bans and partial restrictions, or zones without restrictions for the movement of e-scooters
Introducing special parking places for parking scooters
It is proposed, depending on the restrictions imposed, to make users aware of the restrictions via apps. There, the trip will not be completed— charging the user a fare—until the scooter is placed in a specially designated area.
It has also been proposed to ban the use of e-scooters in unlit areas and on suburban highways. To prevent the use of electric scooters by minors, the committee proposes to introduce weight categories for age restrictions.
"Kicksharing companies propose to form a common ‘bad faith list’ [for customers], whereby all companies will refuse their services to such users. Additionally, the use of e-scooters by the police for patrolling is being considered," said Boranova.
