E scooters users are 'terrifying and terrorising' pedestrians in this Kildare town
They should be banned from canal area
The scooters should be banned from a scenic canal location in Naas, according to a local politician.
Cllr Seamie Moore wants the ban imposed at an “amenity facility area” between Abbey Bridge and Osberstown Bridge on the Grand Canal.
He said these are now “legally allowed on Irish Roads without a need for a licence, registration, tax or insurance and are allowed a speed of up to 20 km/h.”
He added that the route has been turned into an “e-scooter learning course.”
“They are a silent danger to elderly and short of hearing pedestrians and the shared space of the two way amenity route is not suitable for such low level, noiseless, speedsters coming at walkers from both directions,” said the councillor, asking for Kildare County Council to act.
He told a Naas Municipal District committee meeting that the scooters are “terrifying and terrorising” people using the amenity.
“As you dodge one coming to you, there’s another coming behind,” he said, noting that cars are not allowed to use part of the area and people who cooperated with this are unhappy because of the scooter activity.
KCC engineer Donal Hodgins said the area is a shared space, which exists to facilitate access for vulnerable road users - and not to be used for speeding.
He said KCC does not have the power to ban scooters from using public roads, unless a regulation is introduced.