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In the last five years, Local Police officers in Malaga city have issued 10,386 fines to drivers of electric scooters, totalling 1.97 million euros. Incorrect parking, riding in pedestrian areas and riding with two or more people are the main reasons. In 83 per cent of accidents in which these vehicles are involved, the person driving them is at fault. This mode of mobility is involved in five per cent of urban traffic accidents, and these accidents are a cause for concern: they have increased by 30 per cent in the last year. Now the Local Police are going a step further and will control their speed with mobile radars.
The councillors for safety and mobility, Avelino Barrionuevo and Trinidad Hernández, respectively, have announced this action and other road safety measures aimed at the users that involve behaviours that put both their lives and those of other users at risk. Furthermore, the aim is not only to promote respect for speed limits, but also to make all users aware of the importance of responsible driving. In fact, although they are not compulsory, the city council is working on the idea of giving road safety courses for the drivers of these vehicles, on which only the driver is allowed and who must be over 16 years of age. In addition, they cannot carry objects or animals, they cannot use devices such as headphones, and, in general, they have the same restrictions as any other type of vehicle.
The operation will be set up at five points on the city's road network, selected on the basis of data collected in recent years by the accident investigation group (GIAA), where there is a significant concentration of road accidents involving personal mobility vehicles. The council has, of course, chosen not to disclose them so as not to make drivers aware.
The campaign will initially run from 27 May to 9 June, although it will be repeated as many times as deemed necessary throughout the year. The devices will consist of a GIAA unit equipped with a mobile radar and a notifying unit, as the driver will be identified and the speeding offence will be reported at the same time as it is detected as there is no number plate for this type of vehicle.
The general vehicle regulations state that MPVs must be configured to reach a maximum speed of 25 kilometres per hour. Above this speed, they are classified as a motorcycle, requiring a vehicle licence, driver's licence and insurance. Based on state regulations, the mobility ordinance of the city of Malaga sets the following speed limits for VMPs: 25 km/h in cycle lanes; 15 km/h in cycle lanes in pedestrian zones; 20 km/h in Zones 20 and residential streets; and 25 km/h on all other roads. In these cases, the penalty for speeding is 200 euros. The fine is always for the driver, whether the scooter is owned or rented.
In addition, in the event that a personal mobility vehicle exceeds 25 km/h, officers may impound it for not complying with the characteristics set out in the aforementioned general vehicle regulation. It could then technically be considered a moped, which increases the requirements.
The new municipal ordinance on sustainable mobility, the administrative procedure of which has already begun, establishes new safety measures for the use of VMPs, such as the obligation to use an approved or certified protective helmet when driving them, or to carry the roadworthiness certificate provided for in state regulations. Furthermore, the VMP-driver combination must have a minimum height of 1.5 metres, and if this is not met, the use of a safety flag attached to the vehicle will be obligatory so that, with its mast, it reaches this height.
These requirements will be added to others already in force, such as that the user must be at least 16 years of age, and may not carry any passengers, animals or objects that hinder safe driving. In terms of features, all VMPs must have braking systems, a bell, front and rear lights (switched on at any time of the day), and reflective elements or reflectors.
The authority is in favour of these sustainable modes of urban mobility, but always under the premise that the regulations are complied with and the safety of all road users is guaranteed. This is the context of the recent limitation on the entry onto the buses of the Empresa Malagueña de Transportes (EMT) of those VMP that do not comply with the provisions of the resolution of 12 January 2022 of Spain's Directorate-General of Traffic (DGT), affecting both electric scooters and other electric or battery-powered personal mobility devices that do not have the relevant certifications.
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