Ida Ismail
Every morning in Tirana, skateboards are added to the heavy traffic, bicycles, and pedestrians. People rushing to work, boys and girls running to cafes or schools, teenagers who feel like superheroes on two wheels, all braving traffic and, unfortunately, danger.
Andi, 25, is one of them. He runs an online website and delivers orders himself every day on his own bike. “It helps me a lot,” he says. It avoids traffic, saves fuel, and is faster than cars. But, like many others, Andi doesn’t feel safe. There are no dedicated lanes, no protection, and he is often forced to pass between cars, sidewalks, or anywhere else he might slip.
The law is missing, advice is not enough
In Albania, skateboards are caught between two worlds: Neither bicycles nor motorbikes. This gray area has left users vulnerable and the police powerless.
In the absence of a clear status, punishments are merely verbal advice, even though the danger is tangible, real, and growing.
Road safety expert Fadil Likaj is straightforward:
When you have a vehicle that goes 25 to 50 km/h, driven by minors without helmets, without experience and without rules, you are inviting an accident. Likaj said: “Albania does not have a specific law that clearly regulates the use of electric skateboards. There is no set age for use, no license, registration or technical inspection is required, and there are no designated lanes where their use is allowed.”
Accidents are figures that show human drama
35 accidents involving skateboards were recorded across the country from January 1, 2024 to May 31, 2025, 18 of which were in Tirana. The trend is seen to be increasing in the first 5 months of this year. According to the State Police, during 2024, 20 accidents involving skateboards were recorded, 13 of them in Tirana. However, from January to the end of May 2025 alone, 15 accidents were recorded, signaling a drastic increase. The age of the injured is mainly 16-25 years old.
The numbers of people injured in accidents are higher, as not only skateboarders who are involved in car accidents but also those who fall while riding seek medical attention. In the first 5 months of 2025, 212 skateboard accident cases were treated, most of them young people between 15 and 30 years old. At the Trauma Hospital, doctors like Dr. Ilir Hasmuça deal with 2 to 4 injured patients every day with fractures, head trauma, broken ribs, and damaged lungs. Some of them face permanent consequences.
The most serious case occurred on June 25, 2025: Three children, two skateboards, a speeding car, and a life that is currently intubated. Although the children ran a red light and the driver of the car was arrested for speeding and then placed under “house arrest,” the institutional response was… silence.
There are rules. Enforcement? Not so much.
Since August 2023, there has been a regulation requiring the wearing of a helmet, respecting the signs and circulating only in dedicated lanes which, ironically, do not exist in most cities. Although fines are foreseen, in practice they are not enforced. In the field, the police have not imposed any fines for lack of a helmet or incorrect use of skateboards.
Road safety expert Fadil Likaj suggests installing smart cameras to monitor the movement of skateboards in urban areas. According to the expert, these devices help identify rule violators, but also serve as a preventive tool for dangerous behavior.
What are other countries doing? Examples that Albania is ignoring
In Paris, citizens voted to ban rental skateboards. In Italy, license plates and helmets are required. In Kosovo, they have been banned from squares and sidewalks since 2022. In Malta and Finland, strict restrictions have been imposed. Albania, meanwhile, continues to experiment with the lives of its citizens.
In the end, it's not the monopath's fault.
The skateboard itself is a fantastic invention for cities filled with traffic and pollution. But when used without rules, without education, without infrastructure, and without control, it becomes a source of fear and accidents.
