Cabinet has considered a report on the laws and enforcement responsibilities for the use of e-bikes and e-scooters – discussing the public’s concerns about anti-social behaviour, safety, and illegal use within our local communities.
Members had consensus that local issues are significantly underreported and that incident data does not reflect the current situation – likely due to residents not knowing how or who to report issues to. Cabinet agreed for the Council to work with South Wales Police to deliver an awareness campaign, ensuring residents know the police’s reporting mechanisms, and encourage them to start using these when incidents happen in the future.
This exercise will include all Elected Members as community representatives, who regularly receive concerns from the public. The process will inform and provide evidence for future considerations about whether the Council could adopt its own powers to tackle issues relating to e-bikes and e-scooters.
Cabinet considered the report on Monday, June 15, in response to a previous Notice of Motion made to the Council, requesting an assessment of the current legislation. The report noted the Council’s responsibilities in this area is through its Trading Standards – ensuring vehicles that are placed onto the market are safe, focusing on the product rather than the person using it.
The current legal position is that a compliant e-bike is lawful – with cyclists having a duty to behave in a safe and responsible manner, as outlined in the Highway Code. All privately-owned e-scooters are illegal on public roads, pavements and cycle paths, and are only permitted in approved rental trials.
South Wales Police, rather than the Council, has the responsibility to tackle the irresponsible or illegal use of e-bikes and e-scooters. Relevant legislation covers a range of punishable offences that relate to road traffic offences and anti-social behaviour. There is an established framework, with the powers enforceable by the police.
Current partnerships, recording incidents, and future options
The Council is a part of the RCT Community Safety Partnership – where officers work with the police to reduce the impact of anti-social behaviour in communities. This work encompasses the impact of off-road vehicles (quad bikes, motorbikes, e-bikes). The Mid Glamorgan Off Road Vehicle Organisational Group also meets bi-monthly and is chaired by the South Wales Police Chief Inspector for Community Safety and Partnerships.
Incidents or complaints involving e-bikes and e-scooters are recorded by the police under a broader range of anti-social behaviour (asb) categories. There is no specific data being recorded for e-bikes or e-scooters, with incidents included in a wider ‘road-related’ anti-social behaviour category. From April 1, 2025, to March 31, 2026, just 65 ‘road-related’ asb incidents were recorded, which represents less than 1% of the total number of asb incidents for the entire year.
Future options for the partnership to develop further powers would have a very high evidential threshold. With just 65 recorded incidents across the whole of Rhondda Cynon Taf over 12 months, such evidence is currently not sufficient.
With evidence, one possible option would be to adopt a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO). These can be applied to a broad range of issues, with Local Authorities able to implement their own prohibitions. To introduce a PSPO, the Council needs to be satisfied that the activity has a detrimental effect on the quality of life of those using a public space, and that the activity would likely continue without intervention. Another potential option is a new byelaw. Officers would require strong evidence of a site-specific problem, and that the activity is not capable of being addressed through other legislation.
Councillor Bob Harris, Rhondda Cynon Taf Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities, Culture and Leisure, said: “The rise in popularity of e-bikes and e-scooters has led to a growing number of concerns from the public about their use in our communities, where irresponsible or dangerous behaviour puts people at risk. The police has responsibility to tackle the issue in our communities, with the Council playing an important role in partnership working and information sharing to help the police’s enforcement activity.
“Strengthening such partnerships was a recommendation of Monday’s Cabinet report, and while that was agreed, there was a strong feeling from Members that more needs to be done. Cabinet agreed that the public and Elected Members aren’t clear about a number of factors – the rules for e-bikes and e-scooters, who is responsible for enforcement, and how to report an incident. There was also consensus between Members that the 65 recorded incidents of road related anti-social behaviour, across all of Rhondda Cynon Taf over a whole year, is a significant underrepresentation of the issue faced.
“Members have therefore agreed for the Council to work with South Wales Police to undertake an awareness campaign, where we can better understand the issues faced by the public – and also let residents know how they can formally report an issue with e-bikes and e-scooters. Over time, this will likely have a knock-on effect of raising the number of recorded incidents, so that appropriate action can be taken to address problems our communities are facing. If necessary, that new data may provide evidence for any considerations about new powers that might be available to the Council – like a PSPO or byelaw. This will be a future discussion once we understand the wider picture, and how effective the current legislation is in tackling the issue.
“Officers will now work with our partners towards bringing forward the awareness campaign that has been agreed by Cabinet, which will be advertised publicly in due course.”
Posted on 18/06/2026