Since implementing an outright ban on e-scooters, e-bikes and other personal electric vehicles last week, Princeton University officials have confiscated at least 80 e-scooters on campus, a spokesperson said Tuesday.
In December, Princeton University sent out an email notifying students and faculty that starting Jan. 25 all personal electric vehicles would be prohibited from being stored, charged and used in the university’s “restricted zone,” which includes nearly the entire campus.
The crackdown was initiated in response to concerns about safety and a lack of compliance with the previous policy implemented in August, which restricted the use of these personal vehicles during “peak hours.”
Data collected by a third-party group found that e-scooter use did not change during the restricted hours in the months following the start of the fall semester, officials said.
“(Personal electric vehicle) users have routinely and increasingly been observed riding during the prohibited time periods, exceeding the 10 mph speed limit, failing to yield to pedestrians, operating with two passengers on a single device, and riding while using headphones or other audio devices,” university officials wrote in the December email.
According to Princeton, any personal electric vehicles found in the restricted zone will be impounded.
Vehicles that are registered with the school’s transportation and parking services can be claimed and retrieved at the end of the semester. However, unregistered devices may be unable to be returned to owners without verification, officials said.
The majority of e-scooters confiscated this past week were not registered, according to a spokesperson for the university.
Students unable to remove their personal electric vehicles themselves also have the option to have them shipped for free through the university, officials said.
Though Princeton University may be one of the first university in New Jersey to implement an all-around ban on electric…
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