E-Scooter Traffic Violations Remain High in Japan

Tokyo, Dec. 3 (Jiji Press)--The number of electric kick scooter traffic violation cases handled by police in Japan remains high following the easing of regulations through a revision of the road traffic law in July last year, raising concerns about their safety.

"Some users have repeatedly violated the law." Daiki Okai, president of Luup Inc., a Tokyo-based e-scooter sharing service company, told Jiji Press. Okai suggested that violations could be reduced through measures such as tougher penalties for malicious users.

According to the National Police Agency, police took action against 25,156 violations in the year from July 2023, and 55 pct of the cases involved such violations as driving e-scooters on sidewalks.

Basically, e-scooters are supposed to run on lanes for vehicles, but are allowed to run on sidewalks if they meet conditions such as running at a speed of no more than 6 kilometers per hour.

"We can eliminate (the violations) because it's really only some users who repeat violations," Okai said. Since the end of June this year, Luup has strengthened its measures against violations in cooperation with the police and other organizations.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]