PARIS, France – Up to 5,000 electric scooters could join the 18,600 Vélib rental bikes and 2,000 Autolib’s electric cars on the streets of Paris. It is part of the election program of major candidate Anne Hidalgo.

The Scootlib could fill the gap between the Vélib and Autolib and she says they could be much more attractive to young people. These are now cruising the streets of Paris on 50cc or 125cc machines.

Already in Barcelona and San Francisco

The idea is not new as public rental scooters are already in operation in Barcelona and San Francisco. However in Paris creating more Scootlib' stations would mean taking away parking spaces for cars and Anne Hidalgo has promised to create up to 20,000 more parking spaces in the French capital.

700 recharging stations

Between 3,000 and 5,000 Scootlib' are planned, with 700 recharging stations across the capital and possibly in the suburbs. The cost for rental will amount between € 3 and € 10 per hour, they would have a range of up to 90 km and be fitted with GPS trackers to prevent theft. Each scooter would have a helmet attached, either on the handlebar, under the seat or in the topbox and these would be regularly cleaned.