E-scooters should be made legal to use across London to help discourage car use, a mayoral candidate said today.

Lib Dem Siobhan Benita called for the law to be changed to permit electric scooters to be ridden in cycle lanes and on roads. At present, they are illegal to use on public roads and pavements though the ban is widely flouted.

Riders face a £300 fine and six points on their licence if stopped by police. Last week Ms Benita tested an e-scooter at the Olympic Park in Stratford — where they are legal to use — and said they would be a “fun” and environmentally friendly way to travel in London.

She said she would like to see an e-scooter hire scheme in the capital, akin to Boris bikes. Her call comes ahead of an announcement from the Department for Transport on whether it wants to legalise e-scooters, which can reach speeds of 30mph.

She believes it is “ridiculous” they are not already legal and said: “They add a bit of fun to your journey. I’m not a speed queen but they’re easy to ride and sturdy. I would love them to be zipping around London.

“If we want a green, zero-carbon future we have to embrace this. We have to be honest about the fact we are going to have to have fewer vehicles on the road.” She added: “What I don’t want is people jumping in their car when they could get an e-scooter. I’d rather have people riding these through Richmond Park than all the cars we get.”

She suggested restricting their use to over-18s and would have 10mph speed limits near schools. Some e-scooters use on-board GPS mapping to limit speed in certain locations.

Last week, a report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development said e-scooters were no more dangerous than bikes in cities.

Chris Uff, chief of neurosurgery at The Royal London Hospital, Whitechapel, last month said he was seeing injuries to e-scooter riders “similar to those from high-speed cycle accidents”.

Transport for London is aware of 10 serious injuries and 21 slight injuries to e-scooter riders last year, in addition to the death of YouTube star Emily Hartridge, 35. She died in a collision with an HGV in Battersea in July.

San Francisco banned e-scooters following numerous complaints of riders riding on pavements.

Paris introduced fines for riding e-scooters on the pavement and parking them in doorways. The Netherlands requires them to be licensed. Germany has legalised their use on roads but imposed speed restrictions and age limits.