E-scooter trial could be launched in Leeds

E-scooters could cut carbon emissions as they replace some car use, the report says

E-scooters could hired and used on roads in Leeds if a trial is approved by the government.

The city council said it would use its current e-bike hire provider, Beryl, to run the scheme if it gets the go-ahead from the Department for Transport (DfT).

It said increased use of electric scooters could cut car journeys, reduce carbon emissions and help people get to work faster. The use of privately owned e-scooters on public roads remains illegal.

If approved, the trial scheme would be expected to start from April next year, Leeds City Council said.

E-scooter trials were first launched in July 2020 by the DfT.

Leeds expressed an interest that year, but retracted its application due to the "the complexity and scale of the work associated with the re-designation of cycle tracks," according to the council.

'Resilient' vehicles

The DfT reopened its scheme for applications in July, however, and Leeds City Council applied.

In its application, it said Sunderland's e-scooter hire scheme had had problems with vandalism, but it was more hopeful.

Anti-social behaviour linked to the Leeds bike scheme has reduced since reaching a peak in 2024, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).

The report said: "E-scooters are a more controllable and resilient vehicle type when compared with the e-bike, which saw the highest levels of vandalism in the bike share scheme."

E-scooters can currently only be used as part of a trial scheme and riders must hold a provisional driving licence and be insured.

People would only be allowed to use the e-scooters in a pre-defined zone and the scooters would have "a number of safety and control features enabled to promote safe riding".

The trial would run until 31 May 2028.

The council said its project team and the operator will need to engage with communities and West Yorkshire Police to differentiate between private and hire vehicles, to ensure the public understand the legalities around both.

It said this would "allow the police to enforce illegal activity with confidence when the introduction of a trial might be perceived as an ability to use any e-scooter within the city."

An e-scooter trial scheme was launched in York in 2020 but was scrapped after four years, when operator TIER said it wanted to focus resources on locations with "stronger long-term growth potential".

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