FAQs

An e-scooter is a stand-up scooter with an electric motor in its front and/or rear wheel which is powered by an inbuilt battery. It is generally designed with a large center deck on which the rider stands.

They incorporate a collection of e-scooters, typically shared and available for hire within the public realm, in most cases via connection through the use of a mobile phone application.

E-scooters have been trialed in every state and territory capital city in Australia. Regional centres such as Ballarat, Bendigo, Bundaberg, Townsville and Armidale have also undertaken trials. 

In short - not yet, but the South Australian Government has committed to making e-scooters legal. 

Legislation that will allow for e-scooters to be used on public roads and paths in South Australia has passed state parliament.

The Statutes Amendment (Personal Mobility Devices) Bill 2024 has secured parliamentary support to give the green light for privately owned e-scooters and other personal mobility devices to legally be ridden on roads and in other public areas.

Once the new regulations are introduced (expected mid-2025) it is expected that there will be no requirement for a personal mobility device such as an e-scooter, e-skateboard or a unicycle to be registered or for the rider to hold a licence.  

The new legislation follows extensive consultation in 2023 with private e-scooter users and the broader community - a State Government election commitment - where 87 per cent of survey respondents supported the ongoing use of e-scooters on public roads and paths.

Until the new regulations are introduced, e-scooters are only permitted for use under trial conditions, with trials operating within Adelaide’s CBD and North Adelaide and the City of Norwood, Payneham and St Peters in partnerships between local councils and commercial e-scooter fleet operators.

The City of Mount Gambier will await the introduction of the new regulations (expected mid-2025) before it progresses with a e-scooter fleet trial.

City of Mount Gambier recognises that there are potential benefits in allowing e-scooters within the local transport network, such as connecting the community to the CBD as an alternative to short car trips, and to reduce carbon emissions.

We are conducting our own trial so we can test these devices in the city and see how they could be safely incorporated longer term. The trial aims to investigate how shared e-scooters can be safely used on our roads, bicycle paths/lanes, and shared paths, what demand there is for shared e-scooters in the community and how the community feels about shared e-scooters.

The e-scooter trial will run for a period of 12 months.

Council will monitor the e-scooter trial and evaluate the outcomes at 12 months. At the end of the trial, travel data and usage information will be examined to assess the take-up of the devices and to recommend as to whether or not the use of e-scooters should continue in the future. A report will be presented to Council to make that decision.

Public safety will be a key consideration during the trial period. As similar trials have been conducted in other cities across Australia, the project team will be guided by the experiences of other Council areas and consider all opportunities to reduce risks attached to the safety of both e-scooter users and the broader public.

This can include leveraging the technology available within some scooter fleets to govern speeds or introduce no-ride zones. 

The project team will continue to monitor all aspects of the trial alongside key stakeholders such as SAPOL to ensure that the trial is delivered as safe and effectively as possible. 

We know that our community prioritises the presentation of our city and it will be important that a trial of an e-scooter fleet does not compromise this. 

Council will ensure that permits offered for the trial of a public e-scooter fleet incorporate clear service standards and will monitor the presentation and impact of e-scooters throughout the trial period. 

Most modern e-scooters adopted for use in public fleets also incorporate technology that alert the fleet operator if a scooter has fallen over or is located where it shouldn't be. Council will work with the commercial operator to ensure that these, and any other similar management tools, are leveraged to reduce impacts on the public realm. 

Council will not be running the service, nor responsible for the function or maintenance of the fleet. The Expression of Interest process is a framework that supports Council to facilitate a permit for an operator to trial a commercial e-scooter fleet in Mount Gambier. It will be the responsibility of the operator to manage their fleet and operate the service to the terms of the permit. 

The permit will require the operator to maintain, at its own cost, public liability and personal accident insurance to standards which align to other similar trial programs elsewhere in Australia.