The President of the Garda Representative Association has said enforcement of new e-scooter laws due to come into effect tomorrow will be “weak”.
From tomorrow, the wearing of helmets and high-visibility clothing will be mandatory for those using e-scooters.
Regulations are also being brought in to raise the minimum age for e-scooter use to 18 from 16, however this measure has had to be submitted to the European Commission after legal advice from the Attorney General’s office.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Detective Garda Niall Hodgins said the new laws will be easy to enforce with those people who are compliant.
However, they probably will not be “any use whatsoever” against those determined to ignore the laws.
“Enforcement on these laws is likely to be weak, for a multiplicity of reasons,” he said.
“Without registration of these vehicles, we really can’t do anything with the user who speeds away or leaves a scene,” he said.
“There’s a clear intention here to police this issue, like they do motor vehicles. But without registration, we’re really at nothing with regards to the user who speeds away, who rides on a footpath, who’s non-compliant or is involved in an incident and leaves the scene, so this… creates a major enforcement gap,” he said.
Asked what happens if gardaí try to stop someone not wearing a helmet or hi-vis and they do not stop, Det Gda Hodgins said gardaí are not trained to intervene when there is non-compliance.
“We have sought protections for gardaí,” he said, and did not dispute that if people on e-scooters refused to stop that they would not be pursued.
Garda Hodgins said there was “a serious cost” in targeting the breaches.
“The garda requires a physical intervention, he is the witness of the offence, he has to stop the rider, he has to establish the ID, and then he has to inspect the scooter, so there’s a high cost involved here,” Det Gda Hodgins added.