KUALA LUMPUR: Electric scooter (e-scooter) riders are feeling hard done by because of the soon-to-be-enforced ruling against riding on the road next year.
E-scooter enthusiast Mohd Ezral Jusoph, 42, said it was unfair to punish the overall community of e-scooter riders for the issues caused by a few.
He said instead of banning the scooter riders from the road, he urged the authorities to emphasise the safety aspects.
"What is more important is wearing safety gear at all times when riding anywhere.
"The rented scooters placed here do not make it compulsory for riders to wear the gear, exposing them to danger on the road.
"It is unfair to ask us to obtain a licence to do so," he said when contacted yesterday.
Another rider, Albert Jonathan, 25, echoed the suggestion on the safety aspects.
He said as long as people were riding in the dedicated bicycle lanes, such a ruling should not be enforced.
He added that the government should make it compulsory for people to wear safety gear such as the helmet whenever they ride electric scooters.
"It is not right to ban the e-scooter riders from the road because some are not using it for recreational purposes.
"Some are riding to work and for food delivery, for instance. What about them?"
However, Azhar Haris, 26, supported the move to regulate the use of e-scooters on the road.
The Johorean, who used to work in Singapore, said the situation across the Causeway was almost similar to Malaysia when it came to the e-scooter issue.
He felt that there were serious safety issues related to the e-scooter riders as they often crashed on the road.
"From what I observed, when I worked in Singapore, there would always be issues when it came to e-scooter riding.
"These e-scooters can endanger other road users or pedestrians.
"There should be restrictions and it is good that the government is taking the necessary steps," he added.
On Saturday, the city police said it would take legal action against individuals riding e-scooters on the road beginning Jan 1.
Kuala Lumpur Traffic Enforcement and Investigation Department chief Assistant Commissioner Zulkefly Yahya said his department had received many complaints from the public about e-scooters on the road.
According to the police, there are three areas in the city where the scooters are actively used — around Dataran Merdeka, KLCC and Bukit Bintang.
