But it also urges Government to ensure the law clearly prohibits the use of e-scooters on footways and that enforcement measures are robust enough to deter such behaviour.

Committee chair Huw Merriman said electric scooters have the potential to become an “exciting and ingenious way” to get from place to place, while helping to reduce congestion. However he acknowledged that their arrival on streets “must not make life more difficult for pedestrians and especially disabled people”.

The Committee also said that if the Government does legalise e-scooters following ongoing trials, users should not be required to have a driving licence either for rental schemes or private use.

It describes it as ‘unfortunate’ that a legal technicality means users of rental e-scooters must hold a driving licence, as people without driving licences ‘ought to be a key target demographic for the rental schemes’.

According to the committee, the Department for Transport’s focus now must be on developing and implementing a ‘sensible and proportionate’ regulatory framework for legal e-scooter use, which ensures that potential negative impacts on pedestrians and disabled people are avoided.

It also said there is currently limited evidence within the UK on how the growth of e-scooters has affected modal shift from other forms of transport. It would be counterproductive, it was said, if an uptake in e-scooters took the place of walking, cycling or even kick scooters. The Department should therefore encourage the use of e-scooters to replace short car journeys, it said.

Regarding rental schemes, the committee said they should take place in a diverse set of locations including suburban areas and market towns as well as city centres. The Department is also encouraged to reach out to local authorities in less populated areas if it receives a lack of bids for schemes in such areas.

The Department is asked to closely monitor the number and type of collisions that occur during the e-scooter rental trials to determine, the report says, the future insurance requirements for both rental and privately owned e-scooters, should the latter be legalised.

Welcoming the report’s findings, the Campaign for Better Transport’s communications head Alice Ridley said: “E-scooters can be a great alternative to driving for first and last mile journeys that may be too long or too difficult for some people to walk or cycle. With appropriate safeguards in place, e-scooters would be a welcome addition to the sustainable travel options available to suit people’s individual needs.”

But the Royal National Institute of Blind People said the impact on disabled people must be fully considered and disagreed with the calls for swift legalisation to legalise e-scooters, preferring instead to wait until the outcome of rental trials to make a decision.

A Department for Transport spokesman said: “We welcome the outcome of the Transport Select Committee’s report and believe that e-scooters can offer an affordable, reliable and sustainable way to travel. Safety will always be our top priority and our current trials are allowing us to better understand the benefits of e-scooters and their impact on public space, helping us to design future regulations.”

(Photograph: Joaquin Corbalan P - Shutterstock)