Appleton, WI Mobility & Curb Rules: Shared E-Scooter Rules (2026)

Appleton Municipal Code § 19-201 flatly prohibits the short-term commercial rental of electric scooters to the general public, citing the authority the state gives municipalities under Wis. 237(4). The section defines 'electric scooter' by cross-reference to Wis. 01(15ps), as that definition is amended over time, so the ban automatically tracks any future state redefinition of what counts as an electric scooter rather than freezing to the 2021-22 wording. Because the prohibition sits in Article V alongside the City's other bicycle and electric scooter rules, a dockless scooter-share company placing rental units on Appleton streets or sidewalks for short-term public use is violating the article even without a separate scooter-specific fine written into § 19-201 itself; § 19-162 sets the article's general penalty at not more than five dollars per violation, with removal of a bicycle registration tag for up to thirty days where applicable.

The ban does not reach personally owned electric scooters, which remain subject to the same rules of the road, sidewalk-riding and bicycle-lane provisions that apply to bicycles under the rest of Article V.