Restriction on shared scooters in Brussels suspended, drop zones retained

The Council of State on Thursday annulled the decision of the Brussels government to limit the number of electric shared scooters. That writing La Libre Belgique and La Dernière Heure.

In December, the Brussels Region selected Bolt and Dott as the only two operators who still had a permit for electric shared scooters. A maximum of 8,000 shared scooters would also be allowed to drive around in the capital. VOI and Lime, among others, were left out and went to the summary proceedings judge. In January, they decided that they could continue their activities until their permit expired. The Council of State now suspends the decision of the Brussels government.

“From this morning, the rejected operators, if they still have a permit, can re-deploy and put into service the number of scooters they wish to deploy,” the lawyers for the plaintiff BeeRide stated.

Brussels Minister of Mobility Elke Van den Brandt (Green) makes no secret of the fact that she was disappointed “about the legal guerrilla of the operators, who had asked for this reform and agreed to it after extensive consultation. We needed a much-needed reform of the scooter industry to provide pedestrians, and especially people with reduced mobility, with a serene public space,” he said.

Drop zones

Van den Brandt is pleased that the Council of State has validated the legality of the drop zones and the parking fine system. “Since January 1, we have seen a real improvement – ​​even if not yet perfect – in terms of respect for the sidewalks. The Council of State has now also introduced a fine system with which we can exclude an operator who does not comply with these rules.”

Regarding the number of active operators and the number of scooters per operator, the minister regrets that the Council of State has not given the Region permission to switch more quickly to a system with two operators. “But she does show the legal possibilities to do that and we are working on it with Brussels Mobility,” concludes Van den Brandt.