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Committee debates e‑scooter ban, policing challenges and public outreach
Summary
Weston committee reviewed feedback on electric scooters and eMotos, heard police reports of high‑speed incidents and fleeing riders, and agreed to draft survey questions and clarify ordinance language (including explicit exclusions for licensed motor vehicles) before making substantive changes.
The committee discussed its existing eMoto/e‑scooter ordinance (chapter 82 / article 3) and public feedback about young athletes who use scooters to get to practice. Staff said the current draft—based on an MPO template—had removed a provision allowing eMotos on roadways and that village policy currently prohibits eMotos on public rights‑of‑way.
Police representatives described a pattern of high‑speed eMoto use and at least one incident in which riders fled officers. The police chief said officers cannot safely pursue small high‑speed devices and expressed concern that a serious injury or crash is likely if usage continues unchecked. “We've been having a lot of people fleeing on eModels. We just had 1 tonight,” the chief said.
Trustees and staff raised enforcement and definitional issues: how to distinguish low‑speed play scooters used by children from high‑speed, commercially available eMotos; whether state‑licensed electric motorcycles should be excluded from a local eMoto prohibition; and how enforcement discretion will work in practice. One trustee noted a resident's legal concern that an overly broad definition could inadvertently include fully electric cars.
The committee decided not to change the ordinance immediately. Instead, staff will prepare draft survey questions and alternative ordinance language (including an explicit exclusion for registered/licensed motor vehicles) and return the item to the next meeting for more public input.
