WORLD (Enmaeya News) - November 11, 2025

A new law in Slovakia aiming to enhance sidewalk safety by setting a maximum speed limit for all users — including pedestrians — has triggered widespread mockery and public discontent, with critics accusing the government of restricting individual freedoms.

Dan Kollár, head of the “Cyklokoalícia” association advocating for sustainable transport, told AFP sarcastically: “At six kilometers per hour, it’s hard to keep your balance — even three- or four-year-old children often exceed that speed on their bikes.”

The amendment, passed by the Slovak Parliament in late October and set to take effect on January 1, limits the speed of all sidewalk users — pedestrians, cyclists, and e-scooter riders — to 6 km/h, under penalty of a €100 fine.

However, the 6 km/h limit has sparked a wave of online ridicule, with social media users sharing memes such as a radar photo of a pedestrian walking at 6.2 km/h captioned “Slow down,” and a fake “walking license.”

Kollár criticized the measure, saying the government is “creating a situation where children break the law every day — and learn that it’s acceptable,” calling the legislation “absurd.”

A citizens’ group called “Concerned Mothers” has urged the president not to sign the bill.

According to Slovak police statistics, 67 pedestrians and 22 cyclists or e-scooter riders were killed last year in accidents, though it was not specified whether those incidents occurred on sidewalks or roads.

Since Prime Minister Robert Fico returned to power in 2023, the Slovak government — in this Central European country of 5.4 million people — has introduced a series of legal reforms that critics say curtail certain individual rights.

Slovakia currently ranks first in the world for car production relative to its population.