Illegal e-scooter rides will be clamped down on hard in a south Essex borough as part of a combined council and police push to tackle dangerous and nuisance riders.

Basildon Council is working with Essex Police on the issue after concerns were raised by senior councillors and council bosses about illegal e-scooter riders in the town centre.

The council wrote to Essex County Council requesting a consultation into the trialled use of e-scooters, which has been in place since December 2020.

The council also contacted Essex Police and asked for specific action and a joint operation.

Officers will “target” illegal e-scooter riders with specific patrols to educate riders and those looking to buy the vehicles and clamp down on antisocial behaviour and illegal use of electric vehicles. 

An Essex Police spokesman said: “We are working with partners following concerns about the antisocial use of e-scooters in Basildon town centre. In the upcoming weeks, we will target those who use privately owned e-scooters on the roads and footpaths as it is illegal and poses a road safety issue for other vehicles, and in particular pedestrians.

 “We will use this opportunity to highlight the law to those thinking of buying an e-scooter as a gift this Christmas so they fully understand where and when they can use it, safely and legally. During targeted patrols, we will be stopping e-scooter riders and taking appropriate action, which will include options to report the rider for road-related offences and seize the e-scooter. 

“Currently, it is the law that privately owned e-scooters can only be used on private land with the landowner’s permission. This does not affect the use of a hire company e-scooter being used on planned routes. This will form part of our wider policing plans to keep Basildon safe in the run-up to Christmas, in which we will be working hard to keep people safe, protect our business community and arrest offenders.”

A spokesperson for Essex County Council said: “There have been around three million journeys on e-scooters in Essex since our trial began in December 2020. Central to this uptake is safety, with the app regularly requiring users to undertake safety training before they can ride. Speed is also automatically reduced whenever users enter designated slow zones or no-entry zones.

"The trial e-scooters offer a sustainable and flexible alternative to cars, with the ability to ride them on roads, cycle paths and shared paths.

“The majority of concerns are with private e-scooters, which are illegal to use on roads and public spaces. Private e-scooters are not required to meet the same standards or use the same technology. Basildon Council has been in touch with its request for a consultation and we are discussing next steps internally.”