Mobility Scooters

[feebee102]

Just a quick question....... Is it legal for mobility scooters to drive on the road. Where I live we get an awful lot driving on the main road in our sea side town and it seems dangerous to me. They have no regard to motorists and can cause traffic jams. They are just as bad on the pavement as they can be going at great speed sometimes. I have no problems with people using them but I wish they would consider everyone else

[ummmm]

Seems so.

There's a woman near me who will happily toodle along slowly holding up the cars at rush hour yet she goes top speed down my street...

[RATTER15]

https://www.gov.uk/mobility-scooters-and-powered-wheelchairs-rules/overview

I think they should get some kind of test before being allowed on the roads or pavements for their own safety and the safety of others.

[feebee102]

They don't pay road tax do they

[ummmm]

No...

[alavahalf]

Many modern car owners dont pay tax ... should they also be banned from using the road ?

[RATTER15]

Where has anybody say that anybody should be banned from the road?

[RATTER15]

For many people these mobility scooters are their only mode of transport, I dont think they should be paying road tax. Without them, many would not be able to leave their homes.

[ummmm]

I agree Ratter. But they really shouldn't use them on the road in rush hour.

I would happily move aside to give way to one on the path.

[vulcan42]

They certainly need to be tested, especially the ones who drive round a local supermarket. They knock down displays, bump into trolleys etc, it won't be long before somebody gets hurt.

[feebee102]

I am not wanting them banned or to stop people with disabilities not being able to get around, I just asked if they can go on the road . I agree they should do a test/ road awareness course. Motor bikes have to do a test and many are taught cycling proficiency before they go on the road. It just that some are totally oblivious to the traffic around them..... No signalling, no giving way, pulling out dangerously. If there was no decent pavements in the town I could understand why they are on the road.

[Prudie]

I do have an issue with those that can drive down the main road, then travel a bit on the pavement, straight into Tesco, up the aisles and out straight onto the road again. It seems it's a no-no to knock them because the assumption is they are all driven by disabled people but I think they are dangerous.

[bhg481]

They're starting to sound very much like cyclists.

[slinky.kate]

and there is NOT a lot of decent pavement either .

[feebee102]

There is in Mablethorpe

[smoneybags]

Someone near where I used to live used to drive on the road on the wrong side- extremely dangerous!

[baza]

I have no problem with them keeping to 4 mph on footpaths but before being allowed on the road they should have a test and a letter from both parents.

[Old_Geezer]

"Many modern car owners dont pay tax ... should they also be banned from using the road ?"

Yes.

[mallyh]

how come modern car owners don't pay tax ,just curious .

[Old_Geezer]

Low polluters probably. They love to manipulate using tax rather than play fair.

[slinky.kate]

Road tax has nothing to do with a vehicle being able to use a road. The sole purpose of road tax is to tax vehicles on the emissions which their vehicle sputters out. Efficient cars don't pay tax as they are efficient, and electric vehicles don't. As a scooter is an electric vehicle, road tax should not actually be a factor.

With regards to pavements/main roads, you could say this for bikes as well. It is illegal to cycle a bike on the pavement, but you don't need a licence to cycle one on the road. This is just as dangerous as a mobility scooter as a lot of cyclists come onto the road and don't have a driving licence therefore don't know how they work.

My opinion, mobility scooters should be used on pavements, the people who use these need to get into shops, post offices...

Bikes, if you are on the road you should have a test to say you can cycle on these roads safely. At the end of the day if a cyclist does something wrong, it is the driver that mainly gets the blame and has to live with the guilt of injuring someone, when it may not have been their fault. Any other time you should be on the cycle path. Most cities have a number of cycle paths where you can quite easily get from one part of a city to another.