MEPs to whiz to meetings using scooters

FORGET the Dublin Bikes scheme, Brussels is going one better by providing electric scooters for MEPs to get around.

EU staff and politicians, including Ireland’s 11 MEPs, are to be given the option of using scooters to whiz between meetings in Brussels as part of a plan to reduce emissions.

A new trial will make available 15 machines worth around €500 around the European Commission and European Parliament. The walk between the two buildings takes around 15 minutes.

It is part of an effort by the parliament to “reduce traffic congestion and air pollution, by making the use of public transport for its staff as easy as possible”.

The initial trial will last four months, after which officials will decide whether to expand the scheme.

The wearing of helmets will not be obligatory – but those using the scooters will have to respect Belgian traffic rules.

E-scooters are becoming increasingly popular in some European cities and in the US.

The well-known Mytaxi service announced earlier this month that it is to launch a pilot E-scooter scheme in southern European later this year and a full international rollout in 2019.

Mytaxi chief executive officer Eckart Diepenhorst has said E-scooters would be mostly used for short journeys of around one to two kilometres.

He said they were “highly dynamic and the interest from users is booming”.