Later this spring, the Norwegian Ministry of Transport will introduce a new age limit for e-scooters. To use the devices under new rules, users will need to be over 12.

The Minister for Transport, Jon-Ivar Nygård, has said the rules are being introduced to prevent accidents involving children.

“We understand that it feels stupid for them not to be able to ride the electric scooter they have bought. But the use of electric scooters has proven to be more dangerous than we previously thought, and therefore children must wait to use them until they are old enough,” Nygård told newspaper Aftenposten.

In addition to the age limit, the government will look at other ways to tighten the rules. Among the new regulations being suggested are a ban on driving scooters on pavements, meaning users will have to follow traffic rules and road signs.

If these additional rules are adopted, then it is possible that the government will raise the age limit again, this time to 16.

“Therefore, if it is forbidden to drive on sidewalks, the age limit can be higher, perhaps up to 16 years,” Nygård said.

Last year Oslo took steps to tighten the rules for scooters following a sharp rise in accidents. Among the rules introduced at the time was a cap on the number of e-scooters allowed in the city.