Are Electric Scooters Legal in Washington?

RCW 46.61.710 allows motorized foot scooters on roads and bike lanes similar to bicycles yet bars them from limited-access highways, from sidewalks unless a city expressly allows it, and from federally funded trails posted against motorized use. Operators must be 16 or older (RCW 46.20.500), keep speeds at or below 15 mph, install front and rear reflectors or lights when riding from a half-hour after sunset to a half-hour before sunrise, and operate the scooter solo without passengers. Cities and counties may adopt additional rules—such as parking corrals, sidewalk bans in downtown cores, or mandatory helmet zones—but those local ordinances build on the statewide requirements for lighting, yielding to pedestrians, and staying off prohibited corridors.