Local MP finds common ground at landmark e-scooter summit with councils, operators, and local police
Chris Curtis, Member of Parliament for Milton Keynes North, has said that “common ground and genuine commitment” was the product of his e-scooter summit, which took place to discuss the ongoing e-scooter trial last week at a community centre in New Bradwell.
This meeting brought together local community groups, parish councils in the north of the city, Milton Keynes City Council, e-scooter operators, and Thames Valley Police to discuss the challenges and opportunities presented by the ongoing e-scooter trial in Milton Keynes, which launched in 2020. Despite the opportunities provided by this trial for getting around the city, a number of concerns remain about their use.
Discussions hinged on three major topics around making parking work for everybody, holding riders to high safety standards, and the benefits of micromobility in our city. These topics were drawn out of the survey launched by Chris Curtis MP in the weeks prior, which resulted in over five hundred responses from local residents.
Responsible parking of e-scooters remained a concern held by many, but had been significantly improved by the introduction of mandatory parking zones in 2026. Most parishes in attendance confirmed that they had been given the opportunity to work with the e-scooter operators to tweak the proposed parking zones to ensure they worked well for their communities, and others indicated that they would do so in the future.
Anti-social behaviour on e-scooters was another significant challenge. The e-scooter operators confirmed that they had the ability to ban underage users, or those using the e-scooters irresponsibly with more than one passenger; and the City Council said a significant investment had been made in specialist cameras to help catch anti-social behaviour connected to the trial. ID checks to crack down on underage riders have expanded in recent months, which has led to a significant fall in reported incidents. Anybody who witnesses reckless use of e-scooters is encouraged to get in touch with the operators with the time and place of the incident so that swift action can be taken.
Despite the real challenges faced by the community, a significant amount of common ground emerged from the meeting, with attendees largely agreeing that Milton Keynes was well-built for the scheme and these provided a valuable tool for people to get around our city in a green way. Those present were overwhelmingly committed to making the trial work for everybody, and looked forward to changes at a national level to allow the scheme to move forward past the lengthy trial stage.
It was a pleasure to chair the Scooter Summit in New Bradwell last week. Whilst challenges with the trial remain, I was struck by the common ground and genuine commitment from those attending to making the scheme work for Milton Keynes. The e-scooter operators are open and accessible, so any challenges with parking or dangerous riding should be flagged to them so that they can take the decisive action we need. Organising this summit provided an opportunity for all involved, whether it is in providing and operating the e-scooters, policing our streets and highways, or sticking up for the communities they represent, to talk to each other and communicate the challenges faced. It is vital that this continues so that we’re all pulling together. I will now take the feedback of residents in Milton Keynes North back to Parliament, so that I can take any opportunity that I can to push for the next stage of this process. This trial has been ongoing for a long period of time in Milton Keynes, and it is time that we looked to the next step of this scheme that can build on what we have learned already. This was a hugely useful event, and I am grateful for everybody who attended.
Chris Curtis, Member of Parliament for Milton Keynes North.
