When Melbourne resident Andy Cox decided to sell his car, he was planning to use an e-scooter to get around. But he didn't know riding it on Victorian roads was illegal.
E-scooter trials kicked off in February in the City of Melbourne, the City of Yarra, the City of Port Phillip, and in Ballarat. But outside the trials, e-scooters mostly remain illegal to ride on roads and can only be used on private property.
"We wanted to get rid of the second family car," Mr Cox said.
"We didn't want to be adding to the problem, we kept one with the car seats for the two kids so we could be a one-car household."
More convenient than a bike
Mr Cox had previously been using the scooter on his daily commute, which often involved catching a bus and a train.
Unlike bikes, Mr Cox said he could take the scooter with him on the bus.
"Most of the places I can [catch] public transport … but I was using it to get to where I work, which is a very hilly half-hour walk from the station," he said.
"I can scoot it in about six minutes."
Mr Cox said even when he purchased the scooter he asked the retailer if they were legal, but he said they also seemed unaware of the rules.
They told Mr Cox he could ride it as long as he was wearing a helmet and the scooter did not exceed 20kph.
With police launching an e-scooter safety blitz this week, Mr Cox said his scooter would go unused for now.
"I'm hoping there's going to be some legislation," he said.
Mr Cox said he would be happy to opt-in to a registration or licensing system as a solution.
"I don't want to have to buy another car. Already it's the money factor but I want to be a good citizen," he said.
Police conducting blitz
Victoria Police Acting Inspector Darren Kenos told ABC Radio Melbourne the crackdown came after a 28-year-old man died after sustaining severe head injuries when the e-scooter he was riding hit a speed bump in Pascoe Vale last week.
Mr Kenos said it was concerning that some privately owned scooters were capable of high speeds.
"We're hearing reports of e-scooters being able to travel at 110kph now, and that's frightening when you think about that speed and the nature of these scooters," he said.
Mr Kenos said those scooters were being marketed by overseas companies, but they still remained available to purchase in Australia.
"It's not uncommon to see e-scooters, these privately owned ones, running at 50kph," he said.
There were currently no plans to ban the sale of privately owned scooters.
"There are other items you can buy that are illegal to use on our roads, an unregistered motor vehicle is illegal," Mr Kenos said.
"So it's very hard to stop selling something. It comes down to the person and how they use it."
Fines up to $1,000
Mr Kenos said those willing to take the chance could be hit with a fine, or see the vehicle impounded.
"And so that costs the owner of that e-scooter $900 plus a day in court for unlicensed and unregistered driving of a motor vehicle," he said.
"Effectively, a privately owned scooter is an unregistered motor vehicle, so [if] they're caught, they can cop a fine for an unregistered motor vehicle, as well as for being unlicensed."
Police had been targeting commuters along the Brunswick bike trail in Melbourne's inner north.
"We're also looking at the inner-city suburbs over the next couple of days to weeks," he said.
