CDC launches scooter injuries study
The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention is investigating a spike in injuries related to the use of electric scooters after the devices became ubiquitous on US streets and pavements.
The investigation, the first by the CDC into scootermania injuries, comes after increasing reports of injuries and deaths related to scooters in cities from Washington to Los Angeles and Dallas, and recent news of scooter failures and breakdowns. Cases of broken noses, wrists and shoulders, along with facial lacerations and fractures have been reported.
‘‘This is kind of like a disease outbreak investigation – the disease in this case being injuries associated with dockless electric scooters,’’ said Jeff Taylor, manager of the Epidemiology and Disease Surveillance Unit of the Austin, Texas Public Health Department, who is overseeing the study with the CDC.
‘‘Ultimately, we are doing the study to better understand how we can prevent the injuries from happening.’’
The CDC and the Austin health officials are examining severe injuries that occurred in Austin in a two-month period last year, interviewing hundreds of injured riders and analysing medical charts.
Scooter companies Bird, Spin and Lime said they supported the study. The companies have basic safety information on their apps and labels on their scooters, as well as training instructions. Bird requires users to upload a driver’s licence to confirm they are at least 18 years old. Some of the companies provide free helmets.
Lime, one of the world’s largest scooter companies, last month urged riders to take precautions while operating its scooters, citing a technical ‘‘bug’’ that could cause ‘‘sudden excessive braking during use’’. Last year the company also pulled scooters out of California, after discovering that some may have been carrying batteries with the potential to catch fire.
So far, Taylor said, data showed that many perceptions about scooter injuries were inaccurate, including that a leading cause of injury was collisions with cars.
The report will issue recommendations. Among them, Taylor said, would be the use of helmets. The findings had revealed a significant rate of head injuries and only a 2 per cent rate of helmet use in the sample studied, he said.
The recommendations would also discourage pairs of riders on a single scooter, and would recommend that women wearing heels switch to flats when riding.
‘‘This is kind of like a disease outbreak investigation.’’ Jeff Taylor, Austin Public Health Department