Zurich plans to slash rental e-scooter fleet to 3,000 and mandates city-centre station parking
Zurich's security department plans to cut the city's free-floating rental fleet from 7,350 to 3,000 vehicles and permit only three operators, while introducing mandatory parking stations in the city centre.
The reduction plan
Zurich's security department, led by Karin Rykart, wants to halve the number of rental e-scooters, e-bikes and e-mopeds on city streets. The current fleet of 7,350 vehicles, two-thirds of them e-scooters, would be capped at 3,000. Only three operators would receive permits, down from eight today. Each would be allowed a maximum of 1,000 vehicles. In Kreis 1 and near railway stations, free-floating parking would end and vehicles could only be left at fixed stations.
- Providers (current)
- 8
- Providers (proposed)
- 3
- Vehicles (current)
- 7350
- Vehicles (proposed)
- 3000
Timeline of the clampdown
The push began in 2022 when Islam Alijaj, who uses a wheelchair, was a municipal councillor and submitted the first motion for tougher rules. Since May 2026, Lime has been running twice-daily foot patrols at complaint-prone locations together with the Züriwerk foundation, which works with people with disabilities. In early July 2026, five operators launched the nationwide Trotti-Melder online platform where wrongly parked scooters can be reported with photos and GPS data.
- Islam Alijaj, then a municipal councillor, initiates a push for stricter e-scooter rules.
- Lime starts twice-daily foot patrols at busy locations with the Züriwerk foundation.
- Five operators launch the Trotti-Melder online reporting platform for wrongly parked scooters.
- Zurich security department announces plan to reduce the fleet to 3,000 vehicles and three providers.
- City parliament to debate SP and Greens' proposal for city-wide station zones.
Political reactions
Left-wing parties say the plan does not go far enough. The SP and Greens want station zones across the whole city, not only in Kreis 1, and propose converting car parking spaces where necessary. The AL demands an immediate city-operated removal service for obstructively parked vehicles, with operators paying a fee to retrieve them.
The companies would better admonish their customers to park correctly.
On the right, the SVP and FDP call the intervention excessive. SVP councillor Stefan Iten argues fewer vehicles will not solve the littering problem; what is needed is stricter enforcement against individuals who park badly. FDP councillor Martina Zürcher warns that a station-based model for outer districts would make the business unworkable.
The problem of scooters lying around will not be solved by the city reducing the number of rental vehicles.
With the station-based model in outer districts, the providers' business would no longer work.
Safety backdrop and next steps
The city parliament will debate the SP and Greens' motion before the autumn holidays. Meanwhile, a separate federal review is looking at a helmet requirement for e-scooter riders, after 94 accidents in Zurich last year, more than half of them involving young intoxicated men falling. Broader bike lanes are also being discussed as a way to separate scooter riders from pedestrians.
