August 19, 2025 | Roads Policing and Safety Cameras , Traffic Offences
Request Number: FOI/15276
Category: Crime/Incident Statistics – Road Traffic
Subject: Use of Road Traffic Act in Relation to Electric Bikes and Scooters
Request and Answer:
Request 1
Since 1 January 2020, how many times has the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) invoked the Road Traffic Act (or relevant road traffic legislation) to stop and/or prosecute individuals for the use of electric bikes (also known as e-bikes or pedelecs) and/or electric scooters (e-scooters) that did not comply with the legal requirements for use on public roads in Northern Ireland?
Request 2
If available, please provide a breakdown of:
- The number of stops versus prosecutions.
- The specific offences or sections of the legislation cited.
- Any trends noted year-on-year from 2020 to the present.
Answer
Your request for information has now been considered. In respect of Section 1(1)(a) of the Act we can confirm that the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) does not hold information in relation to your requests. Enquiries made in relation to your request failed to locate any records or documents relevant to your request based on the information you have provided.
PSNI can advise that there is no specific offence for using an electric scooter on public roads. Whilst generic offences such as no licence, no insurance, drink/drug driving etc. may be enforced in relation to e-scooters, PSNI unfortunately do not hold 'vehicle type' in our datasets, therefore such vehicles cannot be identified.
Accordingly, we have determined that the Police Service of Northern Ireland does not hold the information to which you seek access.