Municipalities just outside the Brussels Region are complaining that electric sharing bikes and scooters from different platforms regularly appear on their territory.
The municipality of Vilvoorde complained that it is then in charge of having them removed, and has drawn up its own regulations.
According to a heat map released by Uber, its bikes are showing up in other peripheral municipalities than Vilvoorde, like Kraainem, Zaventem, Dilbeek, Tervuren, Machelen, Dibleek, Asse and Groot-Bijgaarden as well.
"Commuters bring them with them and just leave them behind," said Barbara De Bakker, the Alderman for Mobility in Vilvoorde, reports Bruzz. "Now they are picked up by the police and placed in a shed until the owners of the sharing systems come to pick them up. Especially in spring and summer, a lot of them turn up. The situation is no longer tenable. We're not against the sharing systems, but we do not want chaos like in Brussels," she added.
Vilvoorde has drawn up regulations that will come into force on 1 March, which include guidelines on where sharing steps and bicycles may be left behind, and how many operators are allowed to distribute their vehicles in the city.
When you ride a Jump bike outside the allowed zone, the electrical support will be lost, but you can keep pedalling. However, users will be fined €35 if they leave their bike in an area outside the allowed zone.
Maïthé Chini
The Brussels Times
