The should upgrade the infrustructure to be less shit.
I only see 1 in 10 kids wearing a helmet
I see most kids under 10 wearing a bicycle helmet. Of course, kids under 10 shouldn’t be riding these, as they’re designed to carry heavier loads.
Anyone 16 or older? It grabs my attention if they ARE wearing a helmet.
kids never even pretending to wear helmets on these things
someone i know was going for a walk and chanced upon a mangled child waiting for EMS to show up
52 per cent of all e-scooter injuries we’re seeing involve riders below the legal age
Do they at least give these people and their kids some sort of traffic rules class or something?
I don’t know what the answer here is, it seems like a job for Public Health.
Give away free bicycles? What was wrong with bicycles?
Everything around them is built for cars. When that’s the case, and you have no car (are underage to drive) you essentially have no freedom because you can’t go anywhere or do anything. Bikes are great, they are also exhausting and impractical to cover the distances that cars can. An e-scooter can get you there faster than a bike and without being exhausted. I think it gives these kids a taste of freedom and independence that they crave.
What was wrong with bicycles?
Lazy people, shitty parents.
Not a fan of e-scooters personally. Would prefer ebikes ANY day. You are more likely to get hurt on a scooter than bike because of the way you are positioned on the device, and I’m pretty sure the only reason they’re popular now is because they’re cheaper for the rental companies.
Again, I’m in favour of bikes and ebikes and dedicated bike paths. Not a fan of e-scooters where they dump you on sidewalks and roads and tell you “good luck”.
I’ve owned a private e-scooter for many years and have been using it more often over the last year despite the fact that I also use my bikes for pretty much everything.
The main advantages that I would say put e-scooters ahead of ebikes is the extremely low maintenance, extremely high portability, and the general lower cost of entry, even to get a fairly decent one.
These scooters do lack carrying capacity, and obviously you aren’t getting a workout like you would even on an ebike. However, for short trips where the goal is to get to your destination without sweat and to be able to very neatly tuck this pretty much anywhere, then I think they absolutely have their place.
There had been a sharp increase in e-scooter riders this year, but we also have a rideshare e-scooter program that hasn’t been implemented yet this year due to some kind of contract negotiation issue. So I think a lot of people are just purchasing their own and using them instead of cars or public transit. So on one hand, it’s actually a good thing, but on the other hand, I also find that almost none are wearing helmets and quite a few are riding dangerously on sidewalks.
So there’s still a lot to learn. But this is fairly new tech, and there are going to be growing pains.
Younger children on these is dangerous, though. These are nothing like your traditional kick scooter that kids would normally be riding.
I ride an e-bike, but a scooter is tempting. The biggest reason? Theft and parking. When I take my bike, I have to spend a few minutes at every destination finding a bike rack, finding spot, and then awkwardly locking the bike up thoroughly. Then I have to also remove the lights to my bike, as those will get stolen if I don’t take them with me. So I have to find a parking space, maneuver my bike, remove and pack away the lights, and lock the bike up with a cable and u-lock. Oh and often this is in uncovered bike parking. And I live in the PNW where it’s raining half the year. In contrast, with a scooter I can just take it right in with me to whatever building I’m going into. A scooter just sounds like a whole lot less hassle.
You’re talking about private ownership. I’m talking about the rental scooters. I don’t care if people own them as long as they aren’t the ones going 80km/h.
My problem is with the rental scooters people don’t know how to control/brake and squeeze on 2 people.
Yeah, rentals are a bit of a nuance around here too, but probably because they are still a novelty for many.
IMO, if you’re the type of person who rents often, it’s probably better to buy an e-scooter. The convenience, money saved, and comfort/performance benefits are going to be a massive advantage.
But I’d rather see idiots on rental e-scooters than idiots in multi-ton cars.
Yes, ultimately I agree with you. Micro mobility is far preferable to cars. It would be a better world if everyone was getting around on e-scooters.
Good thing the auto industry is funding fear mongering against automated forms of mobility!
