PARIS (Reuters) - In an unprecedented referendum initiated by its mayor, Anne Hidalgo, the French capital's city council on Sunday called on Parisians to answer a referendum: "For or against self-service bicycles in Paris?" , after complaints against her related to the safety of citizens and the need to comply with driving laws.
At 90 p.m., the results of the vote revealed that Parisians refused to ride these bicycles on the sidewalks of the capital by almost 103%, as more than 7,46 voters participated in the ballot, representing <>.<>% of those eligible to vote.
In a tweet, Hidalgo praised the large voter turnout, calling the vote a "great victory for local democracy."
A voter after casting his vote at the town hall where he arrived using an electric scooter (island)
Popular referendum
The municipalities of Paris witnessed a remarkable turnout of their residents, from nine in the morning until seven in the evening, to decide the fate of self-service bicycles.
In a presidential election-like atmosphere, French people lined up outside the municipal headquarters of all departments of Paris, casting their votes and choosing between "for" or "against" cards.
The citizen Françoise told Al Jazeera Net, "I participate every time there is a vote, regardless of the subject, and I cast my vote today in the eighth district in which I live to meet the call of the mayor of the capital," and added, "I wish we could organize a popular referendum for all matters that concern the people."
The municipality reduced the operators of this service to only 3, distributed over 2500,<> parking lots that expired at the end of March, namely the companies "Lime", "Dott" and "Tier", which enables users to rent their bikes through their own applications.
The result of the referendum is a huge loss for these companies, which see Paris as a large and important market that accounts for about 20% of their profits.
Matthew Faure, co-founder of DOT, criticised the vote, which came shortly before Paris hosts the Rugby World Cup in September and the Olympic Games in 2024, adding that the municipality should then consider alternative solutions to reduce the demand for public transport.
"The outcome of the vote will have a direct impact on the mobility of more than 400,800 people per month, the future of our 90 employees, as well as the consequences for the city's finances," Fore said, with the three operators paying more than <>,<> euros a year to the municipality.
Common Service
About 2.5 million people benefit from the electric scooter service in France, and these bikes can be rented in more than 200 cities, including Paris, which contains 15,<> such bikes.
Perhaps one of the first reasons that came to mind those who voted to preserve these bikes, which began to spread in 2018, is the expansion of transport options in the country, especially in the French capital, which is one of the densest and busiest cities in Europe.
Although public transport from buses and trains is regular and long-distance linking north to south (less than 10km) and east to west (18km), which are relatively short distances compared to other capitals, electric scooters remain the perfect choice for many Parisians.
Frenchman Matt, who entered to vote on his bike, said: "I use it every day to get around and it helps me get to my appointments in time. "It is unfair to determine the fate of a means of transport that serves a large segment of the French people because some do not use it, or because they belong to the owners of luxury cars."
Sarah, a student at the Sorbonne, said: "The electric scooter is very useful for low-income people. With this service, you don't have to spend money on other modes of transport."
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo has been an early supporter of transport development since her election in 2014, which has greatly boosted the construction of pedestrian and cyclist walkways and also made it easier to attract a number of startups to make deals with the city municipality to spread the use of scooters.
Since the launch of the Lim service in June 2018, electric scooters have become the fourth type of self-service transport in Paris, after motorcycles in 2016, bicycles in 2017 and cars in 2018.
Opponents of the use of self-service bicycles say they are not environmentally friendly (Al Jazeera)
Polluted and dangerous
In contrast, critics of electric scooters say they are not environmentally friendly. They are based on a study by researcher Anne de Portoli that says that 60 grams of carbon dioxide is emitted by this bike per kilometer, which means that it is polluted less than cars and buses, but more than the metro.
Others considered it an unsafe mode of transport, as Christophe explained in front of the ballot box: "Many of these bikes usually overtake me while I drive, which is confusing because they move so fast and irrationally."
"I was waiting for the bus in the evening and I saw two young women trying to ride a bike together and they fell several times, it is a dangerous means of transport and it must be stopped to protect our children," his wife said.
A study overseen by the Paris municipality last year revealed that 26% of self-service bicycle users have already experienced several accidents, and that 9% of those affected are in serious condition.
It is worth noting that the municipality has taken a number of measures to prevent these bikes from parking on the sidewalks and forcing their operators to restrict speed within the capital, as well as raising the age of use to 14 years instead of 12 years, and increasing fines from 35 to 135 euros, but they were not enough to control the behavior of their users.
Against the backdrop of Sunday's referendum, these bikes will disappear in the French capital from September 1, as previously done by Madrid, Barcelona, London and Amsterdam, so will other European cities move to impose this ban?