As e-scooters have risen in popularity, I'm sure I haven't been the only one to notice a problem in how publications refer to them. I mean, my job largely relies on communication, right? So, when communication is unclear, I believe that it does all of us a major disservice.
If you say the word "scooter," someone who's used to the type of two-wheelers that you sit on to ride might picture a Vespa, or a Honda ADV150, or a Yamaha Vino, or something similar. But if you say it to people who only know the word 'scooter' as associated with the standing e-scooters you can rent in many large metropolitan areas, then that's the mental image they're going to conjure up.
And to a degree, you can't really blame them, especially when those of us who write about them can't seem to agree on specific, unified terminology. We all know what a car is, and what a truck is. But do you know or care about splitting hairs to settle what's an SUV and what's a CUV if you don't work in the automotive industry? You probably don't.
To my mind, though, it's a serious problem when lawmakers can't properly parse the differences (or willfully choose not to), and thus, go on to confuse a wide-ranging swathe of vehicles. Why? Because two bad things will happen as a direct result.
One is that they'll pass that confusion and misinformation (some might even say purposeful disinformation, and it's honestly hard to tell at this point if that's the case) on to the general public. The other is that they'll make bad, unclear laws based on wrong information that either don't help the problem, or even actively make things worse for their constituents.
No one wants this. (Well, except maybe if you subscribe to a particularly cynical view about what said lawmakers are hoping to accomplish. And that might be true; it's unclear at this point.)
But you know who appears to be very confused about what vehicles are purportedly wreaking havoc on their city streets? Current NYC mayor Eric Adams. You don't have to take my word for it; just read this post and watch this short video his team shared on the site formerly known as Twitter.
The text of the post reads, "I always say there are 8.5 million New Yorkers with about 35 million opinions, but we all agree on noisy and illegal mopeds, scooters, and ATVs: They're annoying. They're out of control. They're scary. And today, we made sure they reached their final stop."
OK, you might be thinking. And then, if you click the video, you'll see that the first word that comes up to describe these offensive vehicles is "mopeds," which was already covered. But then, the intern shown in this video starts doing street interviews with passersby, and asking them about an entirely new category not previously mentioned: E-bikes.
We're then treated to a supercut of various New Yorkers answering whatever question was asked (we don't actually know if it was the same question, or what question it might have been, because that part's been edited out). It's interspersed with video footage of a pile of little mopeds, scooters, and small motorcycles getting crushed by the Mayor's office.
But while you might not love e-bikes and might even find them annoying, one complaint you usually can't level against them is that they're loud.
Typically, if anything, e-bikes might be too quiet. Don't you remember all the hand-wringing that accompanied the rise in EVs in general, about how pedestrians wouldn't be able to hear them coming, so they'd be more dangerous than combustion vehicles? And how some companies started piping fake engine noise around their EVs to circumvent this problem? E-bikes aren't cars (not even EV cars), but the distinct lack of noise remains the same, unless you have a bad brake squeal or something.
And that's a worrying thing for the Mayor's office to be confused about, as Streetsblog NYC points out. In fact, if you go to the NYC DOT's own webpage, you can find an extremely handy chart that tells you exactly how the different categories of e-bike, moped, and e-scooter are regulated. Hint: They're all very different, in ways that make it very clear why confusing them is a serious problem.
For example, both e-bikes and mopeds are divided into 3 separate classes, each regulated by top speed. E-bikes with pedal assist, that can only go up to 20 mph, are considered Class 1 and do not require any type of license to ride (though operators must be 16 or older). Class 2 e-bikes are similar, but may also have a throttle along with those pedals. Move up to Class 3, though, and the top speed bumps up to 25 mph. All three e-bike types may legally ride in bike lanes and vehicle lanes.
The rules are not the same if we're talking about any class of moped, however. All mopeds are considered "limited use motorcycles" for legal purposes, and all require the operator to at least have a valid driver's license (Class A mopeds also require a Motorcycle endorsement, as they can go up to 40 mph), as well as a license plate and a VIN. E-bikes do not require a license plate or a VIN.
Mopeds must be registered with the DMV, while that's not necessary for e-bikes. Also, no moped may legally ride in a bike lane. Period. It doesn't matter what Class it sits in; if it's a moped, it doesn't belong in a bike lane, whereas e-bikes are allowed.
These are all pretty clear differences, and the NYC DOT does a good job at laying them out in a handy chart on its webpage. But if the Mayor's office, or anyone involved in regulation of these vehicles can't keep these vehicles and their rules straight, it creates a world of hurt for a lot of people who are just out here trying to live their lives.
Sure, there are annoying and/or dangerous riders of all types of vehicles; e-bikes and mopeds most certainly included. But most of them are just trying to do regular, everyday things. Live their lives. Pick up their kids, pick up their groceries, do their delivery jobs, and so on. Earlier in 2025, NYC began the controversial practice of issuing criminal summonses(!) to cyclists, rather than simply issuing fines if they committed infractions like not stopping at stop signs. This includes e-bikes, and yes, there have been protests since the law change was first implemented. Streetsblog and others have characterized this as an all-out war on cyclists being waged by the Mayor's office, and added confusion and conflation of e-bikes with mopeds certainly isn't helping matters.
As for the magic "scooter" word, NYC uses it with reference to E-scooters, which are the standing-type that can only go a top speed of 15 mph, and are not meant to be ridden on sidewalks.
So What's The Problem?
One of two things is going on here, and it's not clear which is actually the case. Is the confusion being stirred on purpose, or does the Mayor's office truly not understand the difference between these distinct categories of vehicles for which it already has pretty distinct rules in place?
Either way, it's a major issue. Legislators changing laws to crack down on things they don't understand is problematic for reasons that should be pretty obvious. If the confusion part is being done on purpose, that's a separate (and uglier) issue.
If you're in NYC, or somewhere else facing similar issues and/or confusion, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
