Sarah Mills: Prince Harry needs to shut up and get on with his life
Sarah Mills is pulling no punches as she goes after Prince Harry, who rambled on in an interview after losing a major ap...
Saskatoon is one step closer to allowing privately owned e-scooters on public roads.
On Tuesday, the city’s transportation committee unanimously approved two recommendations from city administration to move towards approving private e-scooter use.
Read More:
- VIDEO: Family business burns Saskatoon’s North Industrial area
- Sask. children’s hospital nurse fired after snooping on 314 patients
- Broadway Bridge closure poses a challenge for Saskatoon running club
Regina and several other cities across Canada already allow privately owned electric scooters to be used by residents, but so far only shared, rented e-scooters that come with helmets, speed limitations and other safety features are permitted in Saskatoon.
A pilot program in the city with e-scooter companies Neuron and Bird began in the spring of 2023 and ended in the fall of 2024. The shared scooters will be available this summer as well.
During Tuesday’s meeting, transportation director Jay Magus told councilors that the provincial government announced its “Limited Speed Motor Vehicle Regulations” in 2022. Those rules currently apply to public e-scooter use, he explained, and would also apply to private use, though they are subject to municipalities enacting their own bylaws to govern e-scooter operation.
“These regulations stated that helmets are required, drivers must be 16, a maximum driving speed of 24 kilometres per hour, e-scooters are restricted to streets with a posted speed limit of 50. If the street has a protected bike lane, then the rider shall use the bike lane,” Magus said.
The transportation director said private e-scooter use would align with the current public program, but noted that it would take some time to work with the city solicitor’s office to change the bylaw in order to allow private scooters to be used.
“The folks who work on bylaws are very, very busy and have other priorities,” he said.
“There’s currently no additional resources to help us make the changes if this is approved in the short term, so I can’t say today when we would update the bylaw other than we would work to do it as quickly as we can.”
Ward 9 Councillor Bev Dubois asked Derek Kowalski, one of the city’s lawyers, whether there was any estimate for how long the process could take.
“Do you have any idea when that bylaw could come to city council?” she asked.
“I wouldn’t be the one making the bylaw amendments, but I would say it would likely be in the fall,” Kowalski said.
According to the city clerk’s office, the matter will automatically be added to city council’s consent agenda for final approval.
