Seattle, WA Mobility & Curb Rules: Shared E-Scooter Rules (2026)

46 SMC is the operating code for electric personal assistive mobility devices (EPAMDs) and motorized foot scooters, the legal category that covers Seattle's shared e-scooter fleets as well as privately owned devices. A confines motorized foot scooters to roadways, shoulders, alleys, bicycle lanes, and public paths, and bars them from sidewalks unless there is no alternative route. Subsection B flips the rule for EPAMDs: they may use roadways, shoulders, sidewalks, and alleys, but not bicycle lanes or public paths, and where an arterial street has a sidewalk, an EPAMD must stay on that sidewalk rather than the roadway or shoulder; an EPAMD may never use the roadway or shoulder of a highway posted above 35 mph.

Subsection C layers on SMC Title 18's park restrictions on motorized vehicles, and subsection D bans both device types outright from public school playfields and playgrounds. E: SDOT's Director may designate zones, based on congested pedestrian traffic, a dangerous speed differential, or a public-safety risk, where EPAMDs and electric motorized foot scooters are capped at 5 mph on any sidewalk, crosswalk, or pedestrian zone, and the Director may also limit those zones to specific times of day. 020 additionally requires scooter operators to yield to pedestrians and human-powered devices with an audible warning before passing, wear a bicycle-safety helmet, and never carry a passenger, while subsection B requires lighting equipment for nighttime use.