Nova Scotia to ban children under 14 from riding e-scooters and e-bikes this fall

Nova Scotia’s public works minister says the province plans to ban children under 14 from riding electric scooters and bikes this fall.

Fred Tilley says the age restriction is part of a slate of changes that will be made to the province’s Traffic Safety Act.

The minister says technology is allowing e-scooters and e-bikes to move much faster than before.

He says the government has done a lot of work to improve the safety of vulnerable road users such as cyclists and pedestrians.

Last year the Canadian Institute for Health Information said e-scooter injuries were on the rise across Canada.

It said there were 498 e-scooter hospitalizations in 2023-2024, a 32 per cent increase.

“We are seeing an increase in e-scooters [and] the technology on bicycles and cars is changing on the daily, which allows these conveyances to move faster,” Tilley told reporters Thursday.