US EditionNo, There Is No ‘Speed Limit’ for Pedestrians in Slovakia
The amendment aims to regulate e-scooter speeds on pavements, not pedestrians, after confusion over a 6 km/h 'walking speed' limit, officials said.
- Bratislava went viral after claims it banned fast walking, prompting memes and foreign coverage, while former Transport Minister Ľubomír Vážny, SMER MP, drafted the amendment that sparked uproar.
- A stray definition in the traffic code set 'walking speed' at 6 km/h and applied it as a speed cap for scooters, bikes and skaters, causing misunderstanding about its intent.
- The Cyklokoalícia warned the 6 km/h limit is absurd and will push families and children onto roads, while a child cycling to school could be classed as speeding under the new rule.
- Opposition parties called the amendment `populist nonsense`, while Ľubomír Vážny and Prime Minister Robert Fico said it targets 'maniacs' on electric scooters, not ordinary pedestrians.
- The episode risks moving vulnerable pavement users into traffic, creating safety hazards beyond the intended scooter crackdown, and international media coverage could erode public confidence in government transport and cycling policy.
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20 Articles
Die Presse
logistik-heute.deThe Member responsible for the draft law makes it clear that it does not threaten a speed limit for pedestrians, but for all others who move on sidewalks.
They won't be allowed to go faster than 6 km/h. Will they really be safer now?
There is, however, less criticism of the definition of the speed of pedestrians than of possible collateral damage to the new law.
Unlike initially assumed, Slovakia does not introduce a speed limit for pedestrians. On Wednesday evening, MP Lubomir Vazny made it clear that it was only a misunderstanding. The speed limit was addressed to all others who moved on sidewalks. On Tuesday, Parliament adopted a legislative amendment which for the first time defined a so-called "speed of walking" of six kilometres per hour. This was defined in several paragraphs as a speed limit for…
A new law in Slovakia aims to protect pedestrians on sidewalks. Statements about the draft gave the impression that pedestrians will have to adhere to a speed limit in the future.
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