Transport Malta said on Wednesday that it seized 137 e-scooters since the beginning of the year as law enforcement was stepped up.

In a statement, it explained that at the beginning of the year it was given the authority by legal notice to enforce the law on the use of e-scooters.

"Over the last few weeks, enforcement officers within Transport Malta carried out several enforcement operations around Malta, including St Julian’s, Sliema, St Paul’s bay, and Gzira among others, which have heavy use of these vehicles, in order to ensure that they are observing all traffic regulations. During these operations a total of 137 e-scooters were confiscated for various reasons, including an expired licence or licence not attached to the vehicle, failure to register the vehicle with the Authority and even vehicles without a valid insurance policy," the authority said.

Operations of this kind will continue in the coming day, Patrick Pollacco, Director of Enforcement within Transport Malta said.

"The Authority is committed to being more vigilant in enforcement by strengthening its presence on our roads," he was quoted saying in a TM statement.

E-scooters have become a problem in several cities. Last week the Paris authorities said they would invite Parisians to vote on whether to allow electric scooter rental services to continue operating in the city.