IN 2012 it became illegal to ride an electric scooter or e-bike in Shenzhen, but sales remained legal. Following a doubling in scooter sales over last year, the traffic police bureau is advising city officials to make sales illegal.

    The selling of electric bicycles has actually increased since 2012. There are 67 shops selling or modifying electric bicycles in Nanshan District alone.

    According to research conducted by the traffic police department, the traffic managing departments from most parts of the city want a sales ban. However, Dapeng, Guangming and Pingshan new areas don’t want a ban because of poor public transport connections in the areas.

    The political advisers did a traffic inspection for the first time in Nanshan District on Tuesday. They found many electric scooters competing with people for space on the sidewalk and drivers offering illegal scooter rides outside Metro stations.

    With electric bikes banned, demand has surged for illegal taxi services provided by electric scooters.

    “Some residents are making their livings with the electric scooters and conflicts happen between us and the scooter users sometimes,” said a traffic policeman in the district.

    The unidentified traffic officer said it is hard to enforce traffic laws because people who break the law have a bad attitude towards authorities.

    Since banning electric bicycles in Shenzhen, the law enforcement team in Nanshan District has dealt with more than 60 cases of resistance and spent over 600,000 yuan (US$ 93,960) on medical treatment for officers after conflicts and nearly 200,000 yuan on medical treatment for the violators.

    Some residents oppose the ban, seeing electric scooters as convenient, eco-friendly and a good way to avoid traffic during rush hour.

    The city’s traffic police said electric bikes are environmentally friendly, but the batteries can cause pollution if they are not properly recycled, which is expensive.

    The traffic police blamed electric scooters for many road deaths. Data shows motorcycles or electric scooters caused 38 percent of accidents. The number of confiscated motorcycles and electric bicycles is growing, with about 4 million electric bicycles in police lockup in Shenzhen.

    A national data shows that traffic accidents caused by motor vehicles have decreased in recent years, but accidents by non-motor vehicles hiked. In Shanghai, 668 accidents by non-motor vehicles have claimed 269 lives this year.

    Running on the wrong side of roads, occupying lanes and running red lights are the top three causes of non-motor vehicle accidents. (Zhang Qian)