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Renfe allows electric scooters again, but Rodalies maintains the ban
From this Monday, 7 September, travelling with an electric scooter is once again permitted on much of Renfe’s rail network. The company has lifted the ban in place since December 2023 on Cercanías, Media Distancia and Larga Distancia, but there is an important exception for people getting around Barcelona: Rodalies de Catalunya maintains the ban.
This creates a particular situation for Catalan travellers. A scooter that meets the new requirements may be carried on Renfe services such as AVE, Alvia, Euromed, Intercity or Avant, but it may not enter Rodalies trains or facilities subject to the conditions set by the Generalitat.
The change does not mean that any scooter can be taken on the train. Renfe requires the vehicle to be approved and entered in the relevant DGT register, to have visible identification, valid compulsory third-party liability insurance and a circulation certificate.
During the journey it must remain folded and switched off. It may not be connected to sockets or have its battery recharged, and it must be placed in luggage areas or at a point where it does not obstruct aisles, doors, emergency exits or reserved areas. If the train’s occupancy makes it impossible to store it safely, staff may deny access.
Older uncertified models are not automatically included in the reopening either. Renfe has set the criterion of admitting only certified and identified vehicles, even though general regulations still allow certain transitional situations for older scooters.
In Catalunya the story is different and also much longer. The ban on bringing electric scooters and unicycles onto public transport within the ATM area began on 1 February 2023, after a scooter exploded inside an FGC train in November 2022. What was initially intended to last six months ended up becoming an indefinite restriction for safety reasons.
For that reason, the change now announced by Renfe does not alter Rodalies conditions. Catalan rules still expressly state that electric scooters or unicycles may not enter its vehicles or facilities, even if they have once again been permitted on other Renfe rail services.
Catalunya is not the only exception either. Renfe is for now maintaining the restriction on Cercanías de Euskadi and on certain northern regional services, while applying the new conditions across the rest of the network.
The reopening comes almost two years and nine months after Renfe banned these vehicles from all its trains on 12 December 2023. For a Barcelona user, however, the change will depend on which train they take: they may carry their scooter on certain national Renfe services, but will still have to leave it outside if their journey begins on Rodalies.