The lack of traffic rules for light electric vehicles will lead to an increase in the number of accidents involving them

According to the Law of Ukraine dated February 24, 2023 No. 2956-IX, electric scooters, unicycles, Segways, hoverboards, hoverboards and other electric vehicles are officially recognized as vehicles in Ukraine.

According to the Law, light electric vehicles are divided into 2 categories:

1) light personal electric vehicle – a wheeled vehicle equipped and driven exclusively by electric traction motors (one or more) with power in the range of up to 1000 W, a storage system of electrical energy (battery), which can be charged by connecting to an external source of electrical energy, with one, two, three or four wheels, with a maximum design speed in the range of up to 25 kilometers per hour;

2) low-speed light electric vehicle – a wheeled vehicle equipped and driven exclusively by electric traction motors (one or more), an electrical energy storage system (battery), capable of being charged by connecting to an external source of electrical energy, with two, three or four wheels with a maximum design speed of less than or equal to 50 kilometers per hour and more than 10 kilometers per hour, and a curb weight of no more than 600 kilograms.

At the same time, the law still does not define the traffic rules for light electric vehicles, the rights and responsibilities of their drivers. There is also no provision for the registration of light electric vehicles, the procedure for subjecting to an inspection of its technical condition, the age at which a person can drive light electric vehicles, or obtaining license or at least their driving skills. These and other factors influence the increase in the number of accidents and complicate the process of finding the driver of light electric vehicles and bringing him to legal responsibility if he violates traffic rules (hereafter referred to as traffic rules). Drivers are not always held accountable for dangerous rides. Practice shows that pedestrians suffer the most, and for police and doctors, already overloaded with work under martial law, this is yet another layer of work.

So, using another type of transportation is actually legal, but there aren’t any rules. In my opinion, first a procedure for obtaining the rights to drive light electric vehicles, the rules for driving them should be developed and adopted, and then the use of such vehicles should be allowed, or these changes in the law should be made simultaneously. Alternatively, after the introduction of the term light electric transport in the legal field, the rules for its use can be immediately adopted. But it is definitely not advisable to do the opposite.

Therefore, we continue to observe how drivers of light electric vehicles move at their own discretion on sidewalks, pedestrian areas, bicycle paths or roads. Moreover, violations of pedestrian rights begin even before consumers start using light electric vehicles: rental companies place scooters on sidewalks and pedestrian areas.

I’m not calling for a ban on light electric vehicles as such; for some, it is a convenient and affordable form of transportation, perhaps also environmentally friendly, but pedestrians should not suffer or be injured because it is convenient for one person to have everything. make way for traffic violators on sidewalks and pedestrian crossings. zones. But let’s all admit (including owners and users of light electric cars) that even a very responsible driver of light electric cars in Ukraine uses them at his own peril and risk: the our infrastructure (now I mean roads, sidewalks, bike lanes) is poorly equipped everywhere; It is impossible for the renter to check the usability of a light electric vehicle before using it (I will not mention cases when, while riding a rented scooter, the steering wheel or tires fell off or the brakes did not work – they did not isolated , and systematic state control of companies leasing such issues is not carried out); the absence of the same traffic rules for drivers of light electric vehicles (making coordinated movement impossible, at least between drivers of light electric vehicles themselves) and many other factors why the movement of light electric vehicles is unpredictable even for the driver himself. However, if the driver of a light electric vehicle is in charge of his own volition, then pedestrians and other road users will become dependent on the unpredictable behavior of the driver of a light de -electric vehicle.

In connection with the above, in my opinion, it would be useful to temporarily ban light electric vehicles in Ukraine until the proper conditions for their use are created de jure and de facto. Light electric transport is not entertainment, it is not a children’s scooter intended for small children, it is a source of increased risk. And the fact that we occasionally have accidents with victims that happen due to the fault of the drivers of light electric vehicles proves this.

However, at the moment, for some traffic violations, drivers of light electric vehicles may be liable for civil, administrative and criminal liability. For example, a driver will pay 850 UAH for driving a light electric vehicle on a sidewalk or bike lane, and 17,000 UAH for driving a light electric vehicle while drunk.

Patrol police officers are authorized to respond to traffic violations by drivers of light electric vehicles. I tried to find out statistical data on the results of the work of the patrol police in this direction, as well as on the number of injuries as a result of accidents involving and/or due to the fault of owners or users of light electric. Cars. At the official request of the Association of Pedestrians of Ukraine, the Patrol Police Department of the National Police of Ukraine could not provide the requested information, as separate records were not kept on the issues raised. The reason for this is not mentioned. In recent years, there have been many accidents caused by drivers of light electric vehicles, resulting in people being injured or killed. Therefore, I believe that it is necessary to immediately introduce such records and also show in the summary of the information the number of accidents that occurred precisely due to the fault of the drivers of light electric vehicles. Ensuring road safety; Organizing control over compliance with laws and other regulations on road safety is one of the main tasks of the patrol service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (clause 4 of Chapter II of the Ministry’s Patrol Service Regulations of Internal Affairs).

To summarize the above, I suggest that all stakeholders who are in one way or the other involved in ensuring road safety or have the authority to make related decisions, come to the negotiating table and make changes to the traffic policy and law that will comprehensively eliminate the gaps in the use of light electric vehicles. It should be noted that this is not an issue today, it was an issue many years ago, and it needs to be resolved urgently to prevent more victims of accidents involving electric vehicle drivers.

Author:
Pauline Marshall
Head of the Ukrainian Pedestrian Association