PARIS — Riders of privately owned electric scooters in Paris are now required to wear an approved helmet and high-visibility gear on public roads, under new safety rules that took effect Friday following a sharp rise in fatal and serious accidents involving the devices.

The rules, announced by police, apply not only to e-scooters but to a broader category of devices French authorities classify as motorized personal mobility devices, including electric unicycles, Segways and hoverboards. Riders caught without an approved helmet face a fine of €135, or roughly $155, while those who fail to wear a high-visibility vest or other approved reflective gear face a smaller penalty of €35, or about $40.

The measures took effect Friday across Paris and its inner suburbs, including the departments of Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis and Val-de-Marne, extending a patchwork of similar rules already in place in parts of the country. Helmets and high-visibility gear had previously been mandatory in several other French regions, including Seine-et-Marne, Alpes-Maritimes and Vaucluse, but had only been strongly recommended, rather than legally required, in the capital before this week.

Police said the new requirements were introduced in response to a marked increase in serious and fatal accidents involving the devices in recent years. According to figures cited by police from France's national road safety watchdog, 79 people were killed in e-scooter-related accidents nationwide last year, up sharply from 45 the year before.........

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