For all Brussels' efforts to provide public transport options and decolonise the capital of cars, shared e-scooters have captured the popular vote by offering a level of independence that even a multi-layered and efficient public transport network struggles to beat.
Users recognise the freedom to explore the city's hidden corners, the ability to take a ride irrespective of schedules, and the simplicity of dropping the scooter at your destination.
Detractors meanwhile struggle to see past the downsides: speeding through pedestrian zones? Go for it. Swerve around road furniture whilst under the influence? No problemo. Dump the cumbersome contraptions at the foot of a public monument? Pourquoi pas.
Your opinion of e-scooters will probably be one of these two depending on whether you take them or not. In spite of numerous efforts to make users adhere to speed limits, park neatly in designated areas and generally ride safely, examples of these regulations being circumvented or outright ignored are visible on any day.
But whilst no Brussels streetscape is complete without one of the devices, could that all change? It's hard to imagine but in Paris, residents have said ça suffit – from tomorrow the city's 15,000 shared scooters will be purged after locals overwhelmingly indicated their frustrations in a survey.
It's worth noting that anyone not living in France's capital had no say on whether to let scooters stay; presumably they'd have given the vehicles a thumbs-up judging by the piles that build up around tourist hotspots. After all, how better to get a feel for the city than clattering across cobblestones at 20kph?
Back in Belgium, local administrators are trying to get to grips with the issue and promise to slash their number from 21,000 to 8,000. But with previous efforts to establish ground rules failing to stop the devices from being a nuisance, is the final solution to call time on them entirely?
Let @Orlando_tbt know.
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1. Au revoir les trottinettes: Paris ban on shared e-scooters takes effect tomorrow
Banned from Paris by popular vote, shared e-scooters will roll for the last time in France's capital on Thursday 31 August, marking the end of five years of their controversial presence. Read more.
2. Tackling Belgium’s drug problem: Legalising cannabis is ‘common sense,’ says Economy Minister
A solution to the drug and security problem in Belgium's bigger cities, such as Brussels and Antwerp, could be legalising the sale and use of cannabis, according to Federal Economy and Employment Minister Pierre-Yves Dermagne. Read more.
3. Cinema tickets for €1 in Brussels and Wallonia in September
From 1-30 September, 21,000 independent cinema tickets will be available for the price of €1 across 34 cinemas in Brussels and Wallonia, as part of this year's edition of J’peux pas, j’ai cinéma. Read more.
4. Will the Belgian property market cool down enough to make buying more affordable?
As interest rates have reached record-high levels, the property market in Belgium has cooled down. The Brussels Times asked Bart van Opstal of the Federation of Notaries what this means for people looking to buy property at the moment. Read more.
5. Harder to trick: New alcohol check procedure to increase chance of being caught
The alcohol breath test procedure currently in place for checks on the road in Belgium will be adapted so that testing is quicker and more efficient for catching offenders. It is expected that the changes will increase the number of people caught. Read more.
6. The price of a healthy life: How to access PrEP in Belgium as an expat
PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) can be a powerful tool in reducing the chances of HIV infection in at-risk groups. When taken as prescribed, it is up to 99% effective at reducing infection. Read more.
7. Open-air party at Rogier denounced as 'a commodification of public space'
The news of a 10-hour marathon electronic dance open-air being organised in the centre of Brussels will be music to the ears of party-goers, but one action group has heavily criticised it. Read more.
