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Orangeville council bans use of e-scooters within town limits

June 11, 2026   ·   0 Comments

By JAMES MATTHEWS

The growing popularity of e-scooters in Orangeville has garnered much attention from residents.

And some arguments about the conveyance’s use were broached during town council’s June 8 meeting when council voted unanimously not to opt into Ontario’s e-scooter pilot program.

Municipal communications staff were tasked with informing residents about the proper and safe use of the vehicles.

Broadway resident Chuck Simpson said he’s seen more and more e-scooters being used in town over the last few weeks. And he has a number of concerns about their growing popularity.

For one, it seems many riders are unaware of the basic rules of the road. Many riders he’s watched don’t use signals and seldom stop or walk the scooter across an intersection. He’s troubled by how riders scooting down a sidewalk will dodge onto a street and into intersections against traffic lights.

And it seems they believe safety equipment, like a simple helmet, is optional.

“If you get hit by an object in the head, even if you’re doing 25kms/hr, the so-called maximum speed allowed, you’re going to get hurt and the possible loss of control of your scooter,” Simpson said.

He witnessed a couple of young riders blow through a red light, so he spoke to them about the rules of the road.

“I got a new set of hand signals and very colourful reply, which was shocking,” he said of the young riders’ response.

The province established an e-scooter pilot program in 2020 to evaluate their use. That program will run until November 2029 to enable an optimal timeframe to collect data and evaluate policy.

Regulations don’t automatically allow e-scooters everywhere in Ontario.

In fact, the rules stipulate that no person shall operate an e-scooter on a highway, sidewalk, trail, path, walkway, public park, or exhibition ground unless the municipality has adopted rules or a bylaw permitting their use.

“In practical terms, this means municipalities control whether e-scooters are lawful locally and on what terms of use are dictated under the enacted local bylaw,” according to a report to council. “Ontario’s municipal guidance reinforces that point, stating that municipalities wishing to allow e-scooters on their roads must pass bylaws and decide what is appropriate for their communities.”

James Bramley, the town’s licensing and bylaw enforcement supervisor, said e-scooters are prohibited within Orangeville on any sidewalks, roadways, and trailways.

“And this is governed by the province through the Highway Traffic Act,” he said, and added that their use on private property isn’t regulated.

There isn’t a common practice among all the Ontario municipalities that allow e-scooters. There are many that have opted into the province’s pilot program, but many big cities have instituted prohibitions because of safety concerns, he said.

“There are significant challenges,” Bramley said. “Safety concerns as rules aren’t enforced and the challenge to enforce them … due to the fact there are no license plates on these vehicles.”

They’re often operated by young children, and there are prohibitive rules for bylaw staff that complicate charging minors. And he said that bylaw enforcement officers lack the authority to stop a vehicle as police do.

“We can ask for an identification, but we cannot compel identification,” Bramley said. “That’s a very large factor.”

There are no consequences for refusing a bylaw officer’s request for identification.

And that’s why municipal enforcement staff recommend the town not buy into the pilot program.

“If we bring in these regulations and rules, we are a reactive team,” he said.

Councillor Andy Macintosh asked how the town could realistically offer residents education on e-scooter use when that activity is prohibited.

Coun. Tess Prendergast suggested the town take part in the provincial pilot program only as far as its educational ends, and to leave out the enforcement side.

“Because we can’t enforce this,” she said. “That’s the reality. It would be impossible to enforce this by the OPP. But the province is seriously lacking education for kids, parents, and families, and drivers. The onus is now on us as a municipality to pick up that slack.”

Kids can modify those e-scooters to enable them to achieve 40 km/hr, she said.

“These are dangerous,” she said. “Acquired brain injury is no joke.”

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