Surgeons push e-scooter rules
‘‘There need to be clear and consistent rules around the use of helmets, age limits, no drunk or drugged riding, only one person per scooter at a time and a late-night curfew,’’ the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons’ (RACS) New Zealand Trauma Committee chair said.
Many of the injuries could be avoided if there were ‘‘robust, well enforced regulations’’ for scooter use, he said.
Waikato Hospital trauma director Grant Christey said the suggestions were reasonable.
One proposed solution is a speed limit for the footpath.
It’s a key proposal under consideration by the Ministry of Transport, a statement from mobility and safety manager Brent Johnston said.
There would be a default national speed limit – around 10kmh was mooted previously – which councils could adjust to suit their areas.
Multiple scooter crashes, some of them fatal, have made headlines around New Zealand since they were launched here in late 2018.
In Hamilton, a man broke his leg less than 24 hours after Lime scooters were launched in the city.
At Auckland City Hospital, a 19-week study which began in October 2018 showed a little more than one patient a week needed surgery for an injury related to an e-scooter.
Overall, 23 operations on 21 patients cost $404,925, the study found.
Researchers described seeing injuries which ‘‘usually result from motor vehicle collisions or falls from substantial heights’’.
Another study using Auckland DHB and ACC data found 770 people reported e-scooter injuries in the seven months from October 2018.
A loss of balance, including riding at excessive speed, was by far the most common cause of injuries seen at Auckland City Hospital, researchers found.
The Ministry of Transport’s potential footpath speed limit would be part of the Accessible Streets project, which is due to be put out for the public to have their say early in 2020.
The rules will lay out which ‘‘mobility devices’’ can be used on areas such as footpaths, cycleways and shared paths, and also how they can be used.