Mississauga council spent part of its meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 25, wrestling with a question many residents ask on sidewalks and side streets: are e-scooters safe, and who is responsible for making them safer?

Ward 7 Coun. Dipika Damerla brought a motion asking the province to classify e-scooters and e-bikes as motorized vehicles that would need licensing and registration. It failed, with several councillors saying they agreed with its intent but wanted more groundwork first. Ward 8 Coun. and Deputy Mayor Matt Mahoney then said he will bring a motion in the coming weeks to pause the city's e-scooter rental program until safety measures are in place.

I think the way the system works now, it's just not working from a safety perspective.

— Matt Mahoney, Ward 8 councillor and deputy mayor

The worry is fair

Residents who have stepped aside for a scooter on a narrow sidewalk will understand the concern. Damerla put it bluntly in a release before the meeting.

Let's face it; these are motorized vehicles and we need to start treating them as such.

— Dipika Damerla, Ward 7 councillor

Mahoney says he has been working with Peel Regional Police, hospitals and school boards on the issue. That is the right instinct. Those partners hold the information council needs.

But the evidence should come first

The city's rental program, which began in the summer of 2024, has put roughly 900 e-scooters and 300 e-bikes on Mississauga streets. A staff review last fall found the program improved in 2025, with more riders, better parking compliance and fewer complaints. That does not settle the safety question, but it does mean a pause should not be decided on impressions alone.

Before council votes, residents deserve to see the numbers: injuries and collisions involving rental scooters, compared with privately owned ones; where incidents happen; and how many involve young riders. Mahoney has also raised concerns about privately owned scooters, which a pause on rentals would not touch.

A better path

A pause may turn out to be the right call. But it should be one step in a clear plan, not a stand-in for one. Council could set out what specific measures would have to be in place for rentals to resume, such as speed limits in busy areas, age checks or tighter parking rules, and when it will report back.

Mahoney is right that the city has powers of its own and does not need to wait for the province. The best use of those powers is to make rules that target the actual risks, and to show residents the evidence behind them.