The Arlington County Board’s newly adopted regulations lay out expectations for e-scooter riders and companies, with the hope of providing low-cost mobility in a safe and responsible environment.
Motorized scooters and skateboards will be required to have speedometers and achieve a top speed of 15 miles per hour, while e-bicycles can top-out at 20 miles per hour on streets and trails.
When operated on public sidewalks, the top speed of all devices is restricted to six miles per hour. However, the devices will not be allowed on sidewalks if a protected bicycle lane is available.
In addition, the county is considering whether mobility devices should be banned from certain sidewalks based on how crowded the sidewalks are — in a news release, the county said it will evaluate the Rosslyn- Ballston corridor first, based on it being the most-heavily used during a previous pilot program.
As for parking, scooters are required to be parked against a sign or light pole, in a rack, or parked along the curb or at the back edge of a sidewalk, where they are not obstructing pedestrians.
The county says it will install corrals on streets and will encourage riders and companies to deploy and park scooters there, rather than on sidewalks.
A violation of the restrictions on parking will be subject to a $50 civil penalty if the company fails to move an improperly parked scooter within two hours of it being reported.
