{"id":17237,"date":"2025-11-07T19:29:29","date_gmt":"2025-11-07T17:29:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/?p=17237"},"modified":"2026-10-24T15:03:24","modified_gmt":"2026-10-24T13:03:24","slug":"scooter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/scooter\/","title":{"rendered":"Cairo\u2019s Scooter Crackdown Leaves Traders and Riders in Limbo"},"content":{"rendered":"

The <\/span>decision<\/span><\/a> recently issued by the Governor of Cairo to confiscate children’s scooters and close the shops that sell them has stirred wide controversy, both on the street and in the electric bike market. While some citizens say the step aims to protect children after repeated road accidents, traders and users believe that the haphazard implementation of the decision has caused major damage to the market and disrupted buying and selling.<\/span><\/p>\n

The decision, issued on 28 October and published on the official <\/span>page<\/span><\/a> of Cairo Governorate, targeted the small scooters used by children without any controls, after they caused accidents and deaths. However, its application extended to adult scooters as well, leading to the confiscation of goods from several shops in districts such as Abdeen, Maadi and Rushdy Street.<\/span>
\n<\/span>Ahmed Hassan (a pseudonym), an electric bike trader who owns a shop in central Cairo, describes what happened to Zawia3 as “random and arbitrary”, explaining that “traders do not know whether there are fines or procedures for recovering the confiscated goods.” He adds: “The district confiscated scooters from my shop in Downtown, and the same thing happened to colleagues in other areas. In Cairo the decision is being enforced with unjustified strictness, while in Giza the application was more balanced and was limited to those renting out scooters to children only.”<\/span><\/p>\n

The trader points to the contradiction between the decision and the state’s production policies, as the Arab Organization for Industrialization produces most of the adult scooters circulating in the market, alongside quantities legally imported from China through major traders. He asks: “If these products are banned, why is their production or import allowed in the first place?”<\/span><\/p>\n

Hassan affirms that he understands the security motives, but stresses the need to put in place clear regulations for the licensing and use of electric scooters, especially since the Traffic Law contains no provisions concerning them, which leads traffic departments to confiscate them on the grounds that they are not included in the law. He believes that the absence of legal regulation has created confusion among traders and consumers alike, even though the electric scooter is a clean, environmentally friendly means of transport that runs on electricity and emits no harmful emissions, and it should be integrated into the modern transport system.<\/span><\/p>\n

On 28 October, the Governor of Cairo, Dr Ibrahim Saber, directed<\/a> his deputies in the four areas and the heads of districts to immediately close shops that sell electric scooters, considering them among “dangerous children’s toys”, and to confiscate any violating scooter of this type. The governorate announced that the executive bodies in Al-Nozha district had closed a shop selling and renting out children’s scooters because it was operating without a licence and practising an unauthorised activity, noting that the campaigns carried out in a number of districts had resulted in the seizure of scooters that were being used in the streets in violation of the decision.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The Cairo decision was preceded by similar directives from the Governor of Giza, Adel El-Naggar, on 25 July, to the heads of districts and centres, in cooperation with the traffic department, to carry out campaigns to seize children’s electric scooters. A statement issued by Giza Governorate at the time explained that the directive was limited to scooters used by children and boys as recreational vehicles on main corridors and public roads, which are not licensed and pose a danger to the safety of users and pedestrians. Over the past months, the governorate organised several campaigns during which it confiscated a number of electric scooters that were being rented out to boys and children.<\/span><\/p>\n


\n<\/span>The repercussions of the governors’ recent decisions to confiscate electric scooters and ban their sale or rental were not limited to big traders; they also affected the owners of small projects. Among them is Nasr Mubarak, a 59-year-old former employee who suffers from chronic rheumatoid arthritis and severe visual impairment, which forced him into early retirement. After leaving work, he looked for a small project to help him support his family.<\/span><\/p>\n

Mubarak says he drew his idea from the spread of scooter rental for holidaymakers in Alexandria, so he invested all his savings in buying three electric scooters and a motorcycle to rent out to young people. But the recent decisions brought his activity to a complete halt, as consumers shied away from buying or renting for fear of confiscation, even though he lives in a village in Aswan Governorate where the decisions have not yet been applied.<\/span><\/p>\n

He tells Zawia3: “The scooters I own are for adults, not children, and their maximum speed does not exceed 40 kilometres per hour. They are a suitable means of getting around inside villages that lack sufficient transport. This decision has deprived many people of an economical means of transport, and as for me, I do not know what to do after spending all my savings on buying them, especially since I am married with five children at different stages of education, and I now rely on my late father’s pension of only EGP 1,800 a month, amid the rising cost of living.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Mubarak’s account agrees with what a number of citizens who spoke to Zawia3 reported. They considered the electric scooter an economical means of transport that has saved them transport costs, besides being much cheaper than traditional motorcycles, whose <\/span>prices<\/span><\/a> in Egypt start from EGP 30,000 and reach one and a half million, and more economical because it relies on electricity rather than petrol or diesel, whose <\/span>prices<\/span><\/a> have risen by up to 13% in their second increase during 2025, in addition to the fact that it makes no noise and does not pollute the environment. By contrast, other citizens expressed their satisfaction with the decision, out of fear that their children would be exposed to road accidents.<\/span><\/p>\n

Over recent months, Egypt has witnessed a series of tragic accidents<\/a> in which children were killed while using electric bikes (scooters) in different areas. In February 2025, a child was killed in the Gisr El-Suez area of Cairo after colliding with a lorry while riding an electric scooter he had rented for fun, which led to his instant death, and on 27 July 2024, a car collided with an electric scooter carrying three children in Nasr City, killing two children and seriously injuring the third.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Meanwhile, MP <\/span>Amr Roshdy<\/b>, a member of the Local Administration Committee for the Mostaqbal Watan Party, explained that the Cairo Governor’s decision to immediately close electric scooter shops did not come out of nowhere, but was the result of follow-up and a direct demand he had made during a meeting of the executive council with the governor, and of urgent briefing requests he had submitted to the Local Administration Committee of the House of Representatives to ban what he described as “the electric scooter phenomenon” in El-Zeitoun and El-Amiriya, because of the real danger it poses to the lives of children and students due to its haphazard use, as he <\/span>stated<\/span><\/a> on his official page.<\/span><\/p>\n

On 15 February, lawyer Ayman Mahfouz had submitted a <\/span>complaint<\/span><\/a> to the Prime Minister’s Office, bearing the number (9444344), in which he demanded a ban on the use of children’s electric scooters in Egypt’s streets, explaining that these scooters are imported in large quantities and rented out to school students, making them a cause of accidents and crimes, and that their batteries carry a risk of explosion. He called for activating the decision of the Ministry of Trade and Industry that regulates the import and circulation of these vehicles and restricts their sale to designated shops only, and for launching urgent monitoring and security campaigns to protect children and pedestrians from their dangers on Egyptian streets. <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Recommended reading: <\/b>Fuel Prices Raised for the 20th Time: The Government Chooses the Easiest Path, and the People Pay<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

Locally Made Electric Scooters<\/b><\/h1>\n

The electric scooters available in Egyptian markets are not limited to those imported from China, as the Kader Factory for Developed Industries, affiliated with the Arab Organization for Industrialization, <\/span>produces<\/span><\/a> several types of them and offers them for sale in the markets at competitive prices. Staff Major General Engineer <\/span>Mokhtar Abdel Latif<\/b>, Chairman of the Arab Organization for Industrialization, affirms that the organisation, through the Kader Factory for Developed Industries, manufactures electric motorbikes (“scooters”) of all types, explaining that the production process relies on locally made components and others imported from abroad.<\/span><\/p>\n

Abdel Latif affirms to Zawia3 that the organisation began producing this type of scooter about three years ago, noting that prices vary according to specifications and capabilities, such as the distance the electric battery can cover and the speed of the bike, with prices ranging from EGP 15,000 up to EGP 100,000. He denies that the organisation has produced any of the small children’s scooters, which are sold ready-made in the markets after being imported from abroad.<\/span><\/p>\n

He says: “The organisation produces only <\/span>e<\/b>lectric bikes that resemble motorcycles in design and use, and some types of these bikes are subject to traffic licensing just like traditional motorcycles. I believe that the Cairo Governor’s latest decision on banning the electric scooter does not target this type of vehicle, but concerns children’s scooters; otherwise, motorcycles would necessarily have to be banned too.”<\/span><\/p>\n

He adds that the electric scooters manufactured at the Kader factory comply with safety standards and can be ridden on internal roads and highways alike, as their speed reaches about 120 kilometres per hour, which makes them a strong competitor to traditional motorcycles. They run on electricity, so they are considered an environmentally friendly means of transport that is economical in energy consumption, besides being much easier to ride than a fuel-powered motorcycle, as well as lighter.<\/span><\/p>\n

Abdel Latif points out that the organisation has seen growing demand from young people for this type of bike since production began, stressing that the Kader factory has multiple models of them, and he invites the media to visit the factory to see the production lines and the bikes’ specifications up close, as a model of promising national manufacturing that relies on clean technology and renewable energy.<\/span><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, <\/span>Marwa Mohamed<\/b>, a marketer of electric bikes (scooters), explains that the types of electric scooters circulating in the market differ according to motor power and battery capacity, and that the most popular in Egypt is the Chinese-made “Kawawi” brand. She explains that there are three levels of electric scooters, divided into: the small type, equipped with a 450-watt battery and sold for about EGP 10,000; the medium type, with 650 watts, priced at about EGP 14,000; while the largest type, equipped with a 2,000-watt motor, costs around EGP 35,000.<\/span><\/p>\n

She adds, speaking to Zawia3, that the small scooter suits children up to the age of 13 or 14, while the medium type is usually used by the age group up to about 19 or 20, stressing that all these types run on electricity and do not obtain a traffic licence, unlike petrol-powered scooters or motorcycles. She notes that electric scooters are supposed to be used as a means of recreation or of getting around within enclosed areas, but some shops rent them out by the hour for use within limited areas.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Recommended reading: <\/b>Rising Road Accidents in Egypt Contradict the Mega-Projects<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

Regulation and Dedicated Safe Lanes<\/b><\/h1>\n

For his part, Dr<\/span> Hassan Mahdi<\/b>, Professor of Roads and Transport at the Faculty of Engineering, Ain Shams University, believes that the use of electric motorbikes (scooters) may be suitable inside closed residential communities, tourist villages and prepared areas with lanes dedicated to bicycle traffic, but is not safe on public roads or highways. He explains that the main problem lies in the absence of licensing, as the users of these bikes do not hold a driving licence and are not subject to traffic rules, which increases the likelihood of accidents, especially given the weak compliance of vehicle drivers themselves with traffic rules.<\/span><\/p>\n

He explains that many roads in Egypt lack pavements or dedicated lanes, and some highways are not well lit, while electric bikes may not be equipped with sufficient lighting, which makes them vulnerable to collisions, noting that neighbouring countries use these means only within limited areas, such as residential areas or wide walkways dedicated to pedestrians, and not on highways or main corridors.<\/span><\/p>\n

He tells Zawia3: “These means can be useful for delivery services within limited areas, but using them over long distances or on expressways poses a great danger, and it is necessary to enact clear legislation that regulates the licensing of these bikes and ensures their conformity with security and safety standards before allowing their use on a wide scale.”<\/span><\/p>\n

The roads and transport expert points out that Egypt saw an experiment in using shared electric scooters through an electronic app that allows users to rent a bike and pay electronically, but it did not achieve the desired success because of weak demand and the absence of a culture of shared use. He points to the importance of evaluating this experiment and studying its shortcomings in order to develop it and apply it again, given the need for low-cost, environmentally friendly transport solutions and the necessity of shifting to clean transport amid rising fuel prices and increasing pollution, explaining that electric bikes produce no noise or harmful emissions, unlike motorcycles, which are often used without a licence and cause frequent accidents.<\/span><\/p>\n

Mahdi explains that light means of transport, such as electric bikes or “golf” carts, remain outside the licensing system because they are imported as parts and assembled locally without technical or regulatory standards, which makes licensing them currently impossible. He stresses the importance of regularising the status of these means and granting them traffic recognition, in parallel with establishing safe lanes dedicated to them within road development projects, with implementation beginning in specific areas and expanding gradually as the experiment succeeds.<\/span><\/p>\n

For his part, the lawyer specialising in environmental cases, <\/span>Ahmed El-Saidi<\/b>, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Egyptian Foundation for Environmental Rights, considers that the Cairo Governor’s decision to ban electric motorbikes (scooters) reveals a deeper crisis related to the absence of a legislative framework regulating modern means of transport, noting that the Egyptian Traffic Law issued in 1973 is no longer suitable for dealing with current traffic challenges or with technological development in means of transport.<\/span><\/p>\n

He tells Zawia3: “This legislative shortcoming has led to recurring crises with the emergence of new vehicles such as the ‘tuk-tuk’ and electric bikes, as the law contains no provisions regulating their use or licensing, which forces local officials to take unilateral decisions to address the problem without community participation or consultation with environmental experts, and this results in incomplete solutions.”<\/span><\/p>\n

El-Saidi adds that the ban, although it may be based on motives related to protecting children and the safety of citizens, is not a practical solution, because these means already exist and are widely used. He stresses that the solution lies in legalising and regulating the situation, not banning it, especially since electric bikes are an energy-saving, environmentally friendly means of transport, because they run on electricity and produce no pollutants, which is in line with the global trend towards sustainable transport and reducing dependence on fossil fuels amid the current energy crisis.<\/span><\/p>\n

The environmental lawyer points out that developed countries faced the same problems, but did not resort to banning; instead, they allocated lanes for bicycles and electric bikes and lanes for pedestrians, which made the use of these means safe and organised. He cites the experience of the Netherlands, which began this shift in 1984 and, through encouraging policies, incentives and building appropriate infrastructure, managed to make bicycles a main means of transport there.<\/span><\/p>\n

He affirms that Egypt needs to update its traffic legislation and launch awareness and environmental education programmes, alongside supporting individual initiatives that encourage the use of clean means of transport, considering that banning is not a solution, because users will continue to use these means while the problem remains, and he asks: “How can we ban an environmentally friendly means of transport at a time when we are seeking to reduce emissions and encourage the shift to clean energy?”<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Recommended reading: <\/b>City Bikes: An Environmental Project or Political Cosmetics?<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

<\/b><\/p>\n

Chambers of Commerce Follow the Situation <\/b><\/h1>\n

Asked about the decision of the governors of Cairo and Giza to ban the use of electric motorbikes (scooters), confiscate them and close the shops that sell them, Engineer <\/span>Osama El-Shahed<\/b>, Head of the Giza Chamber of Commerce, affirms that the decision is still under study within the chamber, in order to examine its repercussions on traders and on the goods already in the markets, as well as on consumers who own the scooters currently moving on the streets.<\/span><\/p>\n

He tells Zawia3: “The Chamber of Commerce is following the situation closely, in preparation for presenting it to the relevant authorities and taking the necessary measures to protect the rights of the traders and consumers affected by the decision, and it will communicate with the Governor of Giza to discuss the details of the decision and its effects before issuing any official position on it.”<\/span><\/p>\n

El-Shahed points out that a number of affected traders have already begun submitting complaints to the chamber, noting that citizens who bought these bikes from the market may also submit similar complaints, given the material damage the decision may cause them.<\/span><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, <\/span>Ayman El-Ashry<\/b>, Head of the Cairo Chamber of Commerce, denies any knowledge of the Cairo Governor’s decision, issued in late October, to confiscate electric motorbikes (scooters) or close the shops that sell them, stressing that the chamber has not been notified of any instructions or decisions in this regard. He notes that he had been in a meeting with the governor on the same day we contacted him, and that no subject related to electric scooters or the campaigns to confiscate them had been raised.<\/span><\/p>\n

He tells Zawia3: “The Chamber of Commerce in Cairo has not yet received any complaints from traders or shop owners about this matter, but I will contact the relevant authorities in Cairo Governorate to verify the reality of the decision and follow up on the situation, in preparation for taking the necessary measures if it is proven to have been officially issued.”<\/span><\/p>\n

For its part, the House of Representatives, in early November 2021, gave final approval to the draft <\/span>amendment to the Traffic Law<\/span><\/a> and the Child Law, which allows anyone who has reached the age of 16 to obtain a driving licence for light motorbikes such as the motorcycle and the scooter. <\/span><\/p>\n

For his part, Counsellor Ahmed Saad, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, praised the amendments to the new Traffic Law submitted by the Ministry of Interior and approved by the House at the time, explaining that the law kept pace with global developments regarding light motor vehicles, such as electric bikes and motorised scooters. He stressed that the amendments do not include motorcycles or tuk-tuk vehicles, adding that the Egyptian experience draws on similar models in France and Germany, where teenagers are allowed to ride light bikes within specific controls.<\/span><\/p>\n

During a telephone <\/span>call-in<\/span><\/a> to the programme “90 Minutes” on Al-Mehwar channel with presenter Basma Wahba, the MP explained that among the most prominent amendments are the introduction of a driving licence for light motorbikes and the lowering of the age for obtaining the licence to 16 instead of 18, with the aim of regulating the use of these vehicles, which have spread recently. He noted that the executive regulations of the law would specify the technical specifications and speed of these vehicles, and that no vehicle that did not meet those conditions would be allowed to be licensed.<\/span><\/p>\n

At a time when the House of Representatives approved the new Traffic Law amendments, which for the first time introduce a licence for riding light motorbikes and regulate the use of electric scooters, in an attempt to legalise an environmentally friendly means of transport and ease traffic congestion, the governors’ recent decisions to ban and confiscate scooters have caused losses for traders and consumers alike. <\/span><\/p>\n

While traders and consumers await the issuance of clear executive regulations that distinguish between children’s scooters and electric vehicles licensed for adults, hope remains pinned on the Traffic Law amendments helping to reorganise the market and strike a balance between the requirements of security and safety and the protection of citizens’ interests.<\/span><\/p>\n

Editorial correction: The first version of the report stated that the Arab Organization for Industrialization is affiliated with the Ministry of Military Production; the correct information is that it is an independent state-owned body affiliated with the Presidency of the Republic, not the ministry.<\/em><\/p>\n

Editorial correction: The first version of the report stated that Dr Ibrahim Saber is Deputy Governor of Cairo for the Eastern Area; the correct information is that he has been Governor of Cairo since July 2024, and he is the one who issued the decision banning scooters on 28 October 2025.<\/em><\/p>\n

Editorial correction: The first version of the report stated that the House of Representatives gave final approval to the amendment to the Traffic Law allowing those who have reached 16 to obtain a driving licence for light motorbikes in early November of this year; the correct information is that the approval took place in early November 2021, according to the news report published at the time and linked in the text.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Cairo Governor’s decision to confiscate electric scooters also covered adult scooters, causing losses for traders, while Parliament approved a new amendment allowing light bikes to be licensed for those over 16.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":14471,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[413],"tags":[],"kateb":[1550],"class_list":["post-17237","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-society-en","kateb-aya-yasser"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/\u0633\u0643\u0648\u062a\u0631-\u0627\u0644\u0642\u0627\u0647\u0631\u0629.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17237","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17237"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17237\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24056,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17237\/revisions\/24056"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14471"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17237"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17237"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17237"},{"taxonomy":"kateb","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/kateb?post=17237"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}