More Phoenix teenagers could soon be riding electric scooters and bikes around town.
On Wednesday, the Phoenix City Council voted to lower the city’s age requirement for riders from 18 to 16.
Current city code prohibits anyone who is under the age of 18 from riding an electric scooter or bike on public streets. All but one council member approved the age change this week.
Councilmember Ann O’Brien voted no. She wanted the age lowered to 14 because school buses are not an option for everyone and she thought it could be a good way for those starting high school to get to campus.
“In Deer Valley Unified School District, while we bus kids, if you live closer than one and three quarters miles to the school, you do not get bused," O’Brien said. "You must find your own transportation.”
Other council members, like Kesha Hodge Washington, had concerns about safety because at that age, teens have not learned to drive and don’t know the rules of the road.
"While I understand the desire to provide another option for the youth to be able to traverse our roadways, I am a little hesitant about having a 14- or a 16-year-old share the road with our motorists." Hodge Washington said. "We are still, from my perspective, seeing quite a bit of collisions, and I am just hesitant on putting a child in that roadway."
Hodge Washington also questioned the need for the change as some of the city’s e-scooter rental vendors require users to be 18 anyway.
“That’s due to insurance and other requirements," Hodge Washington said. "So if we were to amend our city code to provide for lower age, how would that play with our vendors?”
The city’s street transportation director said the change will mostly cover private e-scooters as vendors would still be entitled to setting their own age requirements.
The council voted 8-1 to approve the change.
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