Live data from Hacker News

Paris votes to ban rental e-scooters

france24.com

541–550 of 571 posts

Re: Paris votes to ban rental e-scooters

#541
post #533

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mean, it's not, because if the options are too time consuming too uncertain and/or too inconvenient people will move further away and buy a car (then expect that everywhere they go to have open roads and 12sqm of open space wherever they decide to stop). To break down what you're suggesting, imagine 20-25 minutes walk to the train station, 10 minutes waiting for the train (you want to be early if it's an infrequent…

The problem down that argument, is if we go by time alone, the car wins almost every time (there are a few cities with certain commutes that are faster by transit, but not many, even WITH traffic jams).

not really.

theres a sweet zone.

almost no journeys inside the city of malmo are faster with a car if you include parking too, nearly all are faster with a bicycle — and its not even close most of the time

Re: Paris votes to ban rental e-scooters

#542
post #533

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> There are other points though, "last mile" is a difficult problem "Last mile" is literally solved with two legs and some shoes. A mile is walked in 15-30 minutes, and if you can scooter you can walk. The actually mobility-challenged can be provided vehicles if necessary.

I mean, it's not, because if the options are too time consuming too uncertain and/or too inconvenient people will move further away and buy a car (then expect that everywhere they go to have open roads and 12sqm of open space wherever they decide to stop). To break down what you're suggesting, imagine 20-25 minutes walk to the train station, 10 minutes waiting for the train (you want to be early if it's an infrequent…

What you describe is not your typical trip inside Paris. That would better describe a suburb to Paris trip, for which 1h to 2h is indeed normal.

A typical Paris trip is 2 minutes walk to a station (at most 5 min if you are slow), then 30 to 45 minutes subway, then 2 more minutes walk to your destination. There are subway station roughly 2 minutes from anywhere in Paris, and you can go from anywhere to anywhere else in about 30 to 45 minutes. During rush hour, subways are every 2/3 minutes on most lines. The highest time you have to wait is 10 minutes during "dead" hours when going somewhere there is a fork.

It will take about the same time by bike or scooter. But if you choose to take a car? At least the same time, and it can easily be double or triple the time depending on traffic. Then you have to park, which is expensive.

Note that for suburbs to Paris trips, very few people take scooters, because then you have to carry it in the suburb train. Most people will either take a bus to the train station, or take their car and park at the train station (not drive to Paris, that would take double the time).

Now again, I'm only describing what I know about Paris and its suburbs. It's a very different situation in other places (since I'm pretty sure the scenario you're describing is one you lived)

Re: Paris votes to ban rental e-scooters

#543
Can't say I'm surprised or disappointed by this. I tried a Lime in Paris in 2019 and it was a hair-raising experience. I'm accustomed to bicycling in city traffic but my overwhelming feeling on the Lime was "one slight mistake by me or a car driver and I'll instantly be dead." It seemed ridiculously dangerous compared to a bicycle.

The danger factor plus all the dead Limes I saw in the Seine made the whole idea appear unsustainable.

Re: Paris votes to ban rental e-scooters

#544
post #492

To be clear: it's not all e-scooter, it's the free service ones. Parisian can still own and use their own, but they're done with the ones being left on the ground randomly, being used in poor fashion (on the sidewalk, or with two/three people standing on one), being thrown in the river, ... And that's mostly caused by free services ones that you don't own and thus don't care if anything happens to it. I don't live in…

Why were there free service scooters? Was it a public service or something?

Mistranslation; GP meant "self-service"

Re: Paris votes to ban rental e-scooters

#545
post #535

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The eruv encircles much of Manhattan, acting as a symbolic boundary that turns the very public streets of the city into a private space, much like one's own home. This allows people to freely communicate and socialize on the Sabbath—and carry whatever they please—without having to worry about breaking Jewish law. This article seems to assume a lot of existing knowledge about Jewish "laws". To provide further inform…

> I can't imagine God at judgement time going "Well you got me on a technicality, head on up you cheeky rascals", but I guess they know him better than me. The reasoning goes like this: - God is perfect and omniscient. - The Jewish laws come pretty much directly from God. - Therefore the law is perfect as written, because to assume that a mortal could ever find an error in the laws of a perfect God would be an act of…

Ok, I do respect that chain of logic. I've never really associated rationalism with organised religion, maybe I've been looking at it wrong!

Re: Paris votes to ban rental e-scooters

#546
post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> So prohibit bikes then? I think government is more concerned about scooters competing with paid for transportation and hence reduction of revenue If you read the article you'll see this is based on a decision by the city's residents, 90% of whom voted against keeping them around. The article seems to refer to two main things: "reckless and drunken driving, as well as clutter on pavements". In my Australian city (I…

> If you read the article you'll see this is based on a decision by the city's residents, 90% of whom voted against keeping them around This is a lie. I don't even need to go look anything up to call 90% turnout a lie. Actual number was probably 7%.

[deleted]

Re: Paris votes to ban rental e-scooters

#547

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Most of the modern world has common public transport, the US is a weird edge case.

You clearly haven't explored the modern world then. Or may have visited 3-5 cities and think you have seen it all. Some non-US metro areas where I found public transport to be inadequate based on my travels in the last 3-4 months - Toronto, Vancouver, Bangalore, Mumbai.

I've been to over 20 countries, many of which I'd consider modern world. I would have been to > 80 cities.

I spent months in both Vancouver and Torono without a car, and both have perfectly workable public transport systems, with Toronto's being a bit better. Both are better than every US city I've been to, and scooters replace neither.

India is a third world country with a pretty low standard of living. I haven't been to Bangalore or Mumbai, but I can't imagine them being relevant to this discussion.

Re: Paris votes to ban rental e-scooters

#548
post #142

Excellent vote from the people of Paris! It's too easy to take these things on the sidewalk, go 20mph and disregard the people around you. Those things also weight quite a bit, so getting hit with that may be life altering.

I've heard there are some crazy people who try to drive vehicles weighing a tonne or more in the city at as much as 40mph, and they often find their way onto the pavements too. Perhaps Paris will treat that menace with the priority it deserves.

No disagreement here. I personally think cars should be (mostly) removed from cities. It's incredible how much you can get done on a bike on a proper bike path + the rest 10% of cases could be handled by public transit.

Re: Paris votes to ban rental e-scooters

#549

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You clearly haven't explored the modern world then. Or may have visited 3-5 cities and think you have seen it all. Some non-US metro areas where I found public transport to be inadequate based on my travels in the last 3-4 months - Toronto, Vancouver, Bangalore, Mumbai.

I've been to over 20 countries, many of which I'd consider modern world. I would have been to > 80 cities. I spent months in both Vancouver and Torono without a car, and both have perfectly workable public transport systems, with Toronto's being a bit better. Both are better than every US city I've been to, and scooters replace neither. India is a third world country with a pretty low standard of living. I haven't be…

> both have perfectly workable public transport systems

Only if you confine yourself to downtowns. Which is why I said metro areas.

> India is a third world country

It is a third world country with lots of modern parts. If you don't think Mumbai or Bangalore or modern cities, that just means you have a very different definition of what modern means.

Re: Paris votes to ban rental e-scooters

#550
post #226

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If sidewalks could be wider it wouldn't be as much of a concern. Narrow sidewalks are to accommodate car parking more often than not. I would rather see less of that in a city centre.

The overcompensation is palpable

It's not clear what you are implying. Could you elaborate?
Post reply on HN