Schools could face legal action if student pronouns and bathroom access not respected
Search
17 Jan 2026
Search
17 Jan 2026
Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content.
Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist.
If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter .
Support our mission and join our community now.
To continue reading this article, you can subscribe for as little as €0.50 per week which will also give you access to all of our premium content and archived articles!
Alternatively, you can pay €0.50 per article, capped at €1 per day.
Thank you for supporting Ireland's best local journalism!
E-scooter.
A young electric scooter rider in Laois has been knocked down by a vehicle and taken to hospital.
A collision took place on a pedestrian crossing on the Dublin Road in Portlaoise, beside St Peter & Paul's Church, this Thursday morning, October 26 at about 9am.
A girl aged 16 who was riding a scooter was hit by a car, Gardaí have confirmed to the Leinster Express / Laois Live.
Her injuries are understood to be not life-threatening. The teenager has been taken by ambulance to Midlands Regional Hospital Portlaoise.
Laois Gardaí have launched an investigation into the collision, and are appealing for any witnesses to contact Portlaoise Garda Station.
E-scooters are outside the law, as there is no regulation yet in place on them.
Earlier this week, county councillors warned of dangers involving e-scooters and indeed incorrect pedestrian crossing usage by all road users including drivers, at the Portlaoise Municipal District and Portarlington Graiguecullen Municipal District meetings.
Cllr Aidan Mullins calls for warning signs on paths in Portarlington to remind the riders not to go on footpaths. Cllr Catherine Fitzgerald and Cllr Willie Aird report that neither cars nor pedestrians or e-scooters are stopping at pedestrian crossings.
However legislation that clears the way for rules on the use of e-scooters on public roads has been signed into law by President Higgins.
The new law, which is aimed at modernising Ireland’s regulatory system for road traffic, also clarifies the legal position of e-bikes.
The Road Traffic and Roads Act 2023 introduces a new class of vehicle called Personal Powered Transporters (PPTs).
The Department of Transport says that regulations can now be commenced to classify e-scooters as PPTs, allowing the minister to specify appropriate power, speed and weight values, along with other technical and usage requirements for e-scooters.
The department points out, however, that e-scooters will remain illegal on public roads until the regulations are in place, expected to happen before the end of 2023.
Pictured: Charlie Hughes and Sharon O'Brien in Poulastore, co-directed by Cabrini Cahill and Ann-Marie Kelly, produced by Mark de Carreau
Subscribe or register today to discover more from DonegalLive.ie
Buy the e-paper of the Donegal Democrat, Donegal People's Press, Donegal Post and Inish Times here for instant access to Donegal's premier news titles.
Keep up with the latest news from Donegal with our daily newsletter featuring the most important stories of the day delivered to your inbox every evening at 5pm.
This publication supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and Office of the Press Ombudsman, and our staff operate within the Code of Practice of the Press Council. You can obtain a copy of the Code, or contact the Council, at www.presscouncil.ie, Lo-call 1800 208 080 or email: info@presscouncil.ie.
