E-scooters should be equipped with speed tracking devices, helmets should be made mandatory for riders and improperly parked e-scooters should be seized by authorities, the Nationalist Party believes.

The PN on Tuesday presented a list of proposals that it said were modelled on best practice used in other countries to regulate the alternative form of transportation, saying that irregular parking and a lack of proper enforcement appeared to be the main sticking points in Malta’s context.

E-scooters have been in the news in the past weeks as complaints mount about pavements and garages being blocked by poorly parked e-scooters and senior citizens complaining about dangerous driving.

Mayors from the eastern region have called on authorities to enforce existing rules, saying this needs to be done before there is a fatal accident.

And the family of a woman who seriously injured her head after falling from an e-scooter has appealed for helmets to be made mandatory for all e-scooter drivers. Currently, helmets are recommended but not required.

The complaints appear to have prompted authorities to act, with Transport Minister Aaron Farrugia saying e-scooter users could soon be fined if they park outside designated parking bays.

The plan is for users to either lose the deposit they paid when hiring the e-scooter, or to have their credit card automatically charged a fine. These changes, however, are still in the planning stage.

In a statement on Tuesday, the PN said it had been observing the issue and discussing it to find solutions that can be implemented for the benefit of all road users.

Among the PN’s proposals to revamp e-scooter regulations:

• Users must have their driving licence verified by e-scooter operators before they can use the service.
• Creating a mobile app to allow people to report damaged or badly parked scooters, submitting photos and locations. Such scooters would have to be removed by the operator within a stipulated time after the reports are verified;
• Authorities responsible for enforcement should have the right to confiscate e-scooters that are illegally parked. Operators would have to pay a fine for each confiscated scooter to get it back;
• E-scooters should have visible registration numbers;
• An information campaign on e-scooter rules and legislation to reduce bad behaviour;
• An exhaustive study should be carried out to identify roads, pavements and promenades that could be used by e-scooter drivers if road infrastructure is improved;
• Parking zones dedicated to e-scooters, featuring parking racks and charging stations. E-scooters must be parked in such bays and cannot be left elsewhere. Where possible, these should be roofed with photovoltaic panels;
• Enforce the use of helmets, with all parking zones having a number of helmets for use by users.
• The number of e-scooters registered for rent should be proportionate to the number of parking spaces, to avoid situations where these are left on pavements due to a lack of parking spaces. Operators should carry out their own studies to implement these new zones to be able to register more e-scooters;
• Only allow an increase in the number of e-scooters if operators present justified arguments in line with demand and the number of parking zones.
• Fines to be paid directly by operators, who would then collect the money from the lawbreakers;
• Equip e-scooters with speed tracking devices, to enforce fines for those not respecting speed limits.
• A penalty points system where points would accumulate with others given for other means of transport. Scooter users who do not have a personal car would have a separate points system.

Six PN MPs signed the statement: consumer rights spokesperson Rebekah Cilia, transport spokesperson Adrian Delia, inclusion spokesperson Graziella Galea, climate change spokesperson Eve Borg Bonello, equality spokesperson Graziella Attard Previ and environment spokesperson Janice Chetcuti.