Various types of rental vehicles are proliferating in Tallinn at an unchecked pace. In addition to the approximately 6,000 e-scooters already in the city, another 1,000 electric mopeds will soon be added. However, the city is only now beginning to discuss how to regulate them.

"Yes, I too would have preferred that this regulation had been on the city government's desk earlier. For various reasons, it did not get there in time. Last Monday, the city government issued clear directives to the Transport Department, including deadlines by which the necessary analyses and regulations must be completed. Apparently, the Transport Department assumed there was still time to develop these regulations. But the situation is new in the sense that no such regulation exists anywhere in Estonia, and therefore, drafting it has taken some time to gain momentum," said Tallinn Mayor Jevgeni Ossinovski (SDE).

Monika Haukanõmm (Center Party), deputy chair of the Tallinn City Council and a member of the opposition, warned that traffic could become dangerous and chaotic if the city introduces regulations only after the fact.

"There's an old Estonian saying: 'Measure nine times before you cut.' But it seems to me that we're cutting first and only then starting to think. If they already knew since last summer that there was interest in expanding into Tallinn, they should have started by developing regulations, specifying speed limits, parking rules, control measures, supervision and public awareness campaigns. This could have been worked on throughout the entire winter season," Haukanõmm said.

Tallinn aims to finalize the regulations by the end of March. For now, light vehicles are only subject to the national Traffic Act, which, for example, sets a maximum speed of 25 kilometers per hour and prohibits their use on sidewalks. No license is required and they are allowed to operate on both car lanes and bicycle paths.

"Right now, there are two main questions for lawmakers. First, do they agree with the local government that we should have the right to impose limits on this flood of vehicles — essentially, how many of these light vehicles we allow on city land? And second, is it really reasonable to permit electric mopeds to be used on pedestrian and bicycle paths?" said Tallinn Deputy Mayor Kristjan Järvan (Isamaa).

So far, agreements with companies have been based solely on mutual understandings.

"Considering that electric mopeds are twice as heavy as rental e-scooters, should we also tighten existing restrictions? We know that Tallinn residents feel threatened by light vehicles, especially when they are used on sidewalks — this is particularly concerning for elderly people and parents with young children," Ossinovski said.

Meanwhile, more rental vehicle providers are waiting to enter the market.

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