Norway proposes nationwide e-scooter ban amid teen speeding crackdown

A 13-year-old caught riding an electric scooter capable of 143 km/h has triggered a fresh crackdown in Norway, where the government now signals a possible nationwide sales ban and age limit for e-scooters. The announcement on Wednesday follows a string of incidents involving minors and high-speed micromobility devices, prompting Oslo to weigh regulatory measures that could be in force by the end of the year.

The move comes as European capitals accelerate parallel debates over digital safeguards for teenagers. On the same day, the European Union released survey data showing that nearly half of teens across 19 member states view social media as having a positive impact on their lives, a perception gap that has widened since the last poll in 2024. Parents, by contrast, estimate their children’s daily screen time at roughly one hour less than the actual figure, according to the EU-wide study published by ORF and Der Standard. The discrepancy has intensified calls for binding age restrictions on social platforms, with Italy now the notable exception among major EU states resisting immediate curbs.

At a G7 youth summit in Évian-les-Bains, 95 delegates from 19 countries issued a joint appeal to world leaders, warning that unchecked algorithms and artificial intelligence pose “an existential threat to the mental health of the next generation.” The statement, echoed in Il Fatto Quotidiano, urges governments to adopt uniform age floors for social media access and to mandate third-party audits of AI systems targeting minors. The communiqué lands ahead of a scheduled July vote in Brussels on the Digital Services Act’s youth provisions, which could set a 16-year threshold for platform registration across the bloc.

Meanwhile, a transatlantic coalition of lawmakers is coalescing around similar restrictions. A companion report by SheKnows, citing internal briefings from 12 countries, lists Canada, Australia, and Japan among those drafting legislation that would bar social media for users under 14, with limited exemptions for educational use. The draft laws envision heavy fines for platforms that fail to verify age, mirroring Norway’s stricter approach to micromobility safety.

Industry groups have pushed back, arguing that blanket bans infringe on digital rights and could push teens toward unregulated platforms. “Age verification at scale remains technically unproven and privacy-invasive,” said a spokesperson for the European Digital Media Association, speaking on condition of anonymity. Yet with parental surveys consistently underreporting usage—parents clocked 2.1 hours daily while teens self-reported 3.2 hours—the political momentum appears unstoppable. Oslo’s transport ministry has opened a 30-day public consultation on the scooter ban, with results expected before the summer recess.