Forcing electronic scooters into a shared space with pedestrians has turned trails into something of the wild west into a case of “survival of the fittest,” an Australian study found.
Australian researchers from Charles Darwin University and the University of New England published a report that found that electronic scooters were “invading the trail of many Australian cities” and questioned the legal meaning of a “pedestrian”.
This investigation comes after alarming CCTV footage of a grandmother being hit on the ground by a high-speed electric scooter on a trail in East Victoria Park that ended up in the hospital with her collarbones broken.
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The woman was brutally run over and thrown several meters down the street, along with the motorcyclist and the vehicle.
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The study published in the Alternative Law Journal said that while “cheap, comfortable, flexible and convenient” transportation was a “green” solution to reduce road traffic and emissions, action had to be taken regarding to the use of roads.
The Australian road rules adopted and applied by each state and territory follow a universal federal model.
Camera icon Police at the scene of a collision between an electric scooter and a bicycle. Credit: 7NEWS / Sunrise
In the past, the National Transportation Commission considered the e-scooter to be a motor vehicle if it could reach speeds in excess of 10 km / h.
Last year the definition of “pedestrian” was updated to include people traveling with single-person personal mobility devices that were powered by electric motors and could reach speeds of up to 25 km / h.
However, the study argued that this new definition was “beyond logic and common sense.”
“Allowing a piece of metal that weighs tens of kilograms (and could extend up to 100 kg or more, including the user’s weight) to travel at 25 km / h between pedestrians and people in wheelchairs is stretching the definition of pedestrian beyond logic. and common sense, “the study said.
Camera IconThis North Coogee girl was hit by an electric scooter. Credit: Nine News / Nine News
“Keeping scooters off the road to prevent serious accidents or potential death due to collisions with motor vehicles and instead assigning scooters to cohabit the road with pedestrians demonstrates a policy option that has turned the road in the wild west: the survival of the fittest. “
The research highlighted whether trails should remain an area for people to walk, socialize or exercise.
Camera Icon The result of a recent WA survey of scooters. Credit: The West Australian
“Pedestrians are vulnerable to direct damage when hit by an electric scooter, with shock tests showing that, in the event of an impact, they come out ‘worse because they do not have any type of personal protection system’, with the risk of injury severe to the head and knee. ”the study said.
The researchers found that the future of electronic scooters in Australia showed “significant potential” if vehicles were managed “responsibly and safely”.
“It is possible to achieve this, but only if policy makers pay attention to the needs of pedestrians, when considering the role these new forms of transport will play in Australia’s future,” they said.
In May, 46-year-old Kim Rowe, who was riding an electric scooter, died after colliding with a cyclist on a blind bend in Thornlie.
The following month, sophomore Lilli Ritzka was airlifted when a man traveling at more than 40 mph hit her in the middle of a North Coogee trail.