Motion calls for more education on e-scooter risks

A city councillor is calling for a public-awareness campaign and tougher enforcement to tackle the illegal use of privately owned e-scooters.

Ivelina Banyalieva, Conservative councillor for Peterborough's Paston and Walton ward, says e-scooter offences are "increasingly normalised". She said she had seen parents taking children to school on them and workers commuting on them.

She has proposed a motion which seeks clarity from Cambridgeshire Police on how officers respond when e-scooter lawbreaking is spotted and calls for more visible enforcement at hotspots.

Between April 2025 and March 2026, Cambridgeshire Police seized more than 450 e-scooters, 126 e-bikes and issued about 180 fines.

In the UK, privately owned e-scooters can only be used on private land. Rental e-scooters operating as part of approved government trials, including Cambridge's Voi scheme, are legal.

Previously, PC AJ Boddington, from the force's casualty reduction team, said illegal e-scooter riders could face a £300 fine, six penalty points and seizure of the vehicle.

He said police had focused on education, visiting 75 schools over the past year to highlight the risks of using e-scooters.

In the motion, Banyalieva's states: "Children, elderly residents and people with disabilities are particularly vulnerable when pavements are used illegally.

"I do not believe enforcement alone is the answer.

"We must educate first, warn clearly and then enforce."

The motion urges the city council to:

• Launch a city-wide public information campaign with police

• Sends an e-scooter safety notice to every school and college for distribution to parents, carers, pupils and students

• Work with employers to distribute the same warning to employees, particularly where e-scooters are being used for commuting

Responding to the motion, council officers said responsibility for enforcement rested with the police, who already run awareness campaigns.

The motion will be debated at a full meeting of Peterborough City Council on Wednesday.

Do you have a story suggestion for Peterborough? Contact us below.

Follow Peterborough news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.