Electric scooters are not legally allowed on public roads in Canada. However, they can be used on private properties and sidewalks. Electric scooters are classified as electrically assisted bicycles and follow many of the same federal laws and regulations. Owning an electric scooter in Canada is easy and does not require a license, license plate, or insurance to own or operate.
Each province may make minor changes to the laws, such as age requirements, and each municipality may make changes as to where they are allowed to be used. The city of Montreal created more than 200 parking spaces specifically for electric scooters shared by companies like Lime and Bird. However, a Feb. 19 city report revealed that people were leaving them anywhere and everywhere, preventing general traffic. This led to a ban on shared electric scooters in Montreal, but privately owned electric scooters are still perfectly legal. In the pilot program, Vancouver and North Vancouver do not allow shared electric scooter schemes, but do allow people to legally drive their own scooters.
Canada is much more open and prepared for the introduction of these electric vehicles than places like the United Kingdom.
