Bolt is to roll out 10,000 e-scooters in Ireland as the government moves to legalise the use of ‘Powered Personal Transporters’ (PPT) in public places.

E-scooters have been illegal in Ireland, but Minister for Transport, Eamon Ryan TD, recently proposed the creation of a new vehicle category to cover them.

PPTs will be treated much like bikes, meaning tax, insurance and driving licences will not be required.

Minister of State Hildegarde Naughton TD commented: “The recent Government approval to draft legislation is a clear demonstration of our commitment to regulate for the safe and sustainable use of e-scooters and e-bikes in Ireland as a matter of priority.

“The benefits of these provisions include providing a legislative framework for the use of e-scooters and e-bikes on a more widespread basis whilst also ensuring and improving safety for all road users.”

Ride-hailing and micro-mobility firm Bolt has responded by announcing its plan to start operating in a number of Irish towns and cities.

The firm already has e-scooters available in 15 countries and launched its taxi-hailing service in Ireland in December.

Extra.ie reports that the plan is to allow customers to switch between taxis, e-bikes and e-scooters, according to which is most convenient.

“Some trips make more sense on an e-scooter, some in a taxi,” said Bolt Ireland manager Luke Mackey. “Bolt can combine them all, and you don’t have to use multiple apps for each service and type of vehicle.

“Once a person enters their destination in our app, we’ll recommend different ways to get there based on time, price or weather.”

The Bolt Four e-scooter was launched in December. It has a maximum speed of 25kph, a 40km range and sensors which detect and automatically report accidents or falls.

Forbes reports that Bolt has also secured €20m from the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation to expand its services in emerging markets in Eastern Europe and Africa.