ELECTRIC scooters and segways have been banned from Beijing’s roads.

    The Beijing traffic management bureau yesterday said those breaking the rule will be fined 10 yuan (US$1.5) and given a verbal warning not to use their vehicle on public roads again.

    There are huge numbers of electric scooters and segways in big Chinese cities such as Beijing and Shanghai. They are a popular means of coping with heavy traffic. But users are told not to use them on the same roads as faster vehicles do.

    Over the weekend, Beijing’s Consumers’ Association published research showing that 19 out of 20 electric scooters and segways couldn’t brake easily. Sixteen out of 20 of those tested could exceed the speed limit of 20 km per hour, the advisory speed for scooters and segway-type products in China.

    Last week, the traffic authority in Shanghai launched a campaign to get electric scooters off the city’s roads. In a few hours, traffic police in Huangpu District caught three riders breaking the rule.

    According to Shanghai police, substandard scooters and segways are dangerous to other traffic, especially at night, as they do not have lights, and cannot brake easily when traveling at a high speed.

    In 2015 a driver of an electric scooter was sent to prison and fined 650,000 yuan after fatally injuring a man in Shanghai when he failed to brake in time.

    Industry insiders say that China lacks industry standards for electric scooters, and that the quality of such vehicles sold on the Chinese market can’t be guaranteed.(CRI)