There are many discussions amongst both pedestrians and city planners to determine how they can get e-scooters to stay off the road. For this and other reasons, the Institute for Highway Safety has completed two different studies to answer a related question: where should e-scooters be ridden? Get the answer below and then contact The Law Offices of Larry H. Parker at 800-333-0000 if you are injured in an e-scooter accident.
Two Sides to the Story
The vice president for the IIHS noted that they did not see many e-scooter crashes with cars or other motor vehicles, but that might be because they are staying on the sidewalks. On the other hand, there have been numerous pedestrian accidents involving e-scooters. This is what led the organization to believe that the issue was worth studying.
Many Cities Have Already Come Up with Restrictions
Even before the study was published, some cities had already added their own restrictions. For example, some cities do not allow e-scooters on sidewalks, while others have barred them from being used in any pedestrian area at all. There are also neighborhood associations throughout the country that are working to pass ordinances that disallow these e-scooters, and even the National Disability Rights Network has been fighting for more regulations on the use of e-scooters.
A Closer Look at an E-Scooter Study
The IIHS researchers wanted to know how e-scooters affected road safety, so they interviewed more than 100 riders who had been injured enough on e-scooters to go to the George Washington University Hospital in Washington, D.C. One of the studies looked at how serious the injuries were based on where and how they were injured, while a second study compared rider demographics and usage patterns.
What the study found was that riders were injured more often per mile traveled than bike riders were, but bike riders were three times more likely to be hit by cars. That said, e-scooters were twice as likely as bike riders to be hurt due to potholes or cracks in the pavement. Why? Because e-scooters do not allow the same control. If a person must stop abruptly on a scooter, they will go over the top of the scooter.
The study further determined that almost 60% of e-scooter riders who were injured were injured while on the sidewalk, and about 30% of those people were injured on sidewalks that prohibited the use of e-scooters. Consider that only 20% of e-scooter riders who were injured were injured in bike lanes or multi-use lanes.
What does this mean for cities? It means they should carefully consider the safety issues involved in the use of e-scooters. If you have been injured in an accident involving an e-scooter, contact The Law Offices of Larry H. Parker at 800-333-0000 now for a free legal consultation.
