DPA submission – Waka Kotahi e-scooter exemption declaration

We made a submission to Waka Kotahi in response to their consultation about whether to renew the declaration that exempts e-scooters from being motor vehicles. This exemption means that, currently, e-scooters are allowed to be ridden on footpaths because they are not considered a motor vehicle.

DPA’s position is that footpaths should be preserved for the use of pedestrians, who include disabled and older people, and small children. It is also because footpaths are not just transport corridors but provide important social spaces in our communities where people meet and children play.

Using fast moving vehicles of any type on footpaths severely compromises the safety and comfort of pedestrians and degrades the non-transport functions of footpaths.

In this submission we outline the various means Waka Kotahi has to fix the issue of e-scooter classification and provide testimony from our members on the negative impact of e-scooters on their lives.

Thank you to those members who shared their experiences of e-scooters for our submission, and to the over 500 people who signed the petition.

Read the DPA submission to Waka Kotahi on e-scooter exemption declaration [Word].