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Inner West Greens councillor Dylan Griffiths on a Beam e-scooter outside Kogarah train station.Credit:Dion Georgopoulos

As the council documents note,e-scooters are already legal in many countries and in Queensland,Tasmania and the ACT. A trial has also been under way in Melbourne since February 2022,covering the entire City of Melbourne,City of Yarra and City of Port Phillip municipalities.

Sydney’s first e-scooter trial began in January,in a small part of the Georges River Council area around Kogarah. The 60 Beam scooters are limited to 20km/h on roads and 5km/h on paths,and 2023 rides were recorded in the first month. Shared e-scooters are illegal on NSW roads and footpaths except in the six trial areas. The other five are outside Sydney.

A map of the e-scooter trial underway since February 2022 in three local government areas in Melbourne.Credit:City of Melbourne

By contrast,shared e-bikes are available in six inner-city council areas:the City of Sydney,Inner West,Woollahra,Waverley,Randwick and Bayside (though not in every part of these municipalities).

Inner West Greens councillor Dylan Griffiths said the council staff’s e-scooter trial proposal was “strange” and he would ask questions about why the trial area had been reduced so significantly.

“Minimising the scale treats it more like a recreational issue rather than an active transport one,” Griffiths said. “With the T3 line being closed for 12 to 14 months,we need actual solutions to make sure people can get to work and use transport in their daily lives.”

Griffiths regularly cycles around the inner west from his home in Summer Hill,including between Petersham and Newtown,which was included in the original Transport for NSW proposal. “I think that[route] is actually pretty ripe for this type of trial,” he said. “We should be looking at ways to make those streets safer for scooters,not ruling them out altogether.”

Transport for NSW welcomed the Inner West Council’s consideration of a shared e-scooter trial. It noted the council’s preferred version would offer a connection to trains at Tempe “with minimal interaction with the road network”.

The department said it was the council’s job to apply for an e-scooter trial and nominate the trial area. “Councils can have trial areas expanded,particularly if the trial is proving popular,” it said.

Transport also said it was investigating new cycling links to Sydenham that would make it “much easier” to cycle or scoot to the metro station when it opens,and “should enable the safe expansion of the scooter trial site”.

Inner West councillors will debate the matter on Tuesday night. A council spokesperson said the proposal was the advice of staff,and the final policy would be determined by elected officials. Labor Mayor Darcy Byrne was unable to comment before deadline.

The government canvassed many options to redress disruption from the Sydenham to Bankstown line closure,which will begin as soon as July. Transport for NSWforecasts 60,000 people will be disrupted each weekday,forcing them onto replacement buses or other services.

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