Furious e-scooter owner kicked off train

‘They could not confirm or deny it I was breaking any rules,’ said passenger of Scotrail

E-scooters are becoming increasingly popular (AFP via Getty Images)

A train passenger was kicked off a Scotrail train for travelling with an e-scooter – despite the company having no official policy banning the item.

Paul Nixon, a 43-year-old general manager, was on the 7.55am service from North Berwick to East Lothian on 26 November when he claims the train driver forced him to leave the train.

He added that he has travelled on the train with his e-scooter – which he folds up and puts under the seat so that it causes no obstruction – without issue for the last year.

“I was evicted off the North Berwick to Edinburgh train by the train driver,” he told the Scotsman.

“The justification for my removal was I was carrying a prohibited item, an e-scooter.”

Mr Nixon showed that neither the Scotrail conditions of carriage nor National Rail rules prohibit e-scooters, “but the driver said he was not driving the train with me on it and set about finding the ticket conductor.”

He complied with the request to leave the train “in the interest of the other passengers who I didn't want to make any later,” but has since lodged an official complaint with Scotrail.

When Mr Nixon contacted the rail company, its customer service representative “could not confirm or deny [he] was breaking any rules”, he said.

ScotRail told the Evening News that e-scooters are not yet banned on its trains, but that the company operator is considering updating its policy after a fire on a London train was caused by one.

Passengers had to evacuate a train at Parsons Green station in early November after an e-scooter set alight due to an exploding lithium battery.

In video captured of the incident, clouds of smoke could be seen billowing down the District Line tube while the scooter was wreathed in flames.