Dockless scooters, those controversial devices critics say have turned Fort Lauderdale streets and sidewalks into a danger zone, are not welcome in Hollywood.
Commissioners moved quickly Wednesday to ban electric scooters from Hollywood’s sidewalks and public rights of way. The ban won’t be final until a second vote in March.
Vice Mayor Traci Callari, a nurse, said she was worried about keeping the city’s streets safe for residents and visitors alike.
“We don’t want our tourists to come to Hollywood and get injured and never come back,” she said. “I think we’re doing the right thing. People don’t follow the rules. And injuries happen.”
City Attorney Doug Gonzales warned commissioners that if they don’t approve a ban now, they may not get the chance.
State legislators are considering a law that would forbid cities from regulating electric scooters, described by Gonzales as those things “you see flying around the streets” in Fort Lauderdale, where an estimated 4,000 people a week are riding scooters downtown and at the beach.
“I think it’s best we act on it before we are told what we can and cannot do,” Callari said. “It protects pedestrians from being injured and [also] the rider.”
Hollywood commissioners approved the ban 5-2, with Mayor Josh Levy and Commissioner Kevin Biederman dissenting.
“I can’t support this the way it’s written,” Biederman said of the proposal. “It goes a little too far. I’m concerned about creating another law that we’re not going to be able to enforce.”