Updated 10.40am
The surprise decision to ban e-rental scooters came in for scathing criticism from cycling advocacy group Rota, which accused the government of unwillingness to regulate shared micro-mobility.
However, it was welcomed by the Nationalist Party, which said the government had given in to the pressure of the opposition and the public.
The government said it would remove hire scooters from the streets from March 1 because of the "disturbances" endured by the community.
Private e-scooters will still be allowed, with incentives introduced to encourage people to buy their own.
In April, Transport Malta announced it was in discussion with operators and local councils to introduce parking bays in nine localities for e-scooters in nine localities, but these never materialised.
The PN said the government's decision follows years of calls for action by the opposition aimed at finding a solution, during which proposals had also been presented.
The action to ban them was a step forward, the PN said.
But it also showed that the government had failed to enforce the regulations on the use of e-scooters. This was an admission that it was not capable of finding an adequate balance between the interests of different people.
Unwillingness to regulate
In its statement, Rota acknowledged that the system “is not perfect and has put pedestrians at risk” but criticised the outright ban and attributed flaws to “a lack of political vision and unwillingness to regulate shared micro-mobility”.
“Without safe infrastructure, such as segregated lanes and dedicated drop-off points, most e-scooter users had no choice but to share pavements with pedestrians, Rota said.
These issues, it said, reflected fundamental deficiencies in the local infrastructure, which historically always prioritised cars at the expense of all other modes of transport, putting further pressure on the already limited public space.
“This created a dangerous predicament for pedestrians, and as Rota, we strongly believe in the hierarchy of road users, safeguarding the most vulnerable.
“If we truly want pedestrian safety (and safety for all road users, for that matter), the authorities should focus on providing better infrastructure for all by building wider pavements, ensuring adequate street lighting, having frequent pedestrian crossings with dropped kerbs and revoking all illegally obtained driving licences,” it added.
Rota said that for Malta to build the necessary infrastructure and deliver the cultural shift needed for rental e-scooters, government agencies need to have policies and implement regulatory frameworks and better enforcement.
For example, initially, the authorities had promised dedicated e-scooter parking spots but these never actually materialised.
“This is a tried and tested solution used in cities all over the world, which could have tackled the erratic parking problem straight away.
“Unfortunately, due to the lack of political will to implement this solution, this exacerbated the already existing issues of accessibility of pavements and created a public nuisance which greatly affected the public’s perception of micro-mobility,” Rota said.
It asked if banning rental e-scooters is truly the best way forward, noting that in the past 15 months, Malta lost most of the micro-mobility options available locally.
“By banning these convenient and clean modes of transportation, we believe that this a step in the wrong direction as this will come at the cost of many citizens who wish to diversify their travel beyond their private car and will greatly impact the country’s ability to encourage alternative and sustainable mobility,” it said.