E-scooters

Had the worst bike related crash of my life due a set of monster potholes (normally cars parked over them) and small wheeled folding bike (20"). Pothole was something like 27cm deep at its worst (pretty sure i didn't even go into deepest part). Was off work (who later failed to renew my contact as was unable to really work normally for a time after) for 11 weeks and had two surgery's. 4 years later I still don't walk right and just had to cut short a 3 day ride due to epic knee pain.
Not a chance in hell I will ever ride a scooter on UK roads, but many will, and many will be injured (riders and others around them).

yeah I have wondered what it must be like hitting a pothole on one, it's bad enough on 40c gravel tyres with the state of the roads!

Deflated tyre 'caused Youtuber's e-scooter crash'

Particularly of note given the above discussion is this I think.

'Ms Hartridge was riding an electric scooter on Queenstown Road when she lost control after passing over an inspector hatch in the cycle lane'

Though not sure how the deflated tyre then comes into it all, would a correctly inflated tyre allowed her to regain control after the inspector hatch?

Not wishing to speculate, I could imagine that the inspection cover may have hit the rim of the wheel because of the lack of air pressure, either throwing her off course or causing the tyre to explode. (I think the latter may be less likely.)

Either way, it serves to highlight one of the risks associated with these scooters, but there are many others.

It's infuriating that against expert advice the Government has caved in to lobbying and removed one of the few things the DfT has long got right. Micro-(auto-)mobility is going to have a terrible crash record particularly on London streets, with their sub-optimal carriageway conditions. One does hope that, as with (non-e-)skateboarding, the activity might not become as popular here as it is in European cities. (NB because of its lower speed I don't consider skateboarding in the carriageway, though illegal, a particularly hazardous thing to do; that's obviously different for e-skateboards.)

RIP Emily Hartridge, a senseless and tragic death.

I’m interested to hear that skateboarding in the road is illegal - it used to bring joy to my heart to see people skating up the OKR and it always struck me as a good thing, partly as a reminder that there are many ways to use roads.

Yes, it's illegal, as with unmotorised scooters, to use them in the carriageway. In practice, I don't think it's a problem if people do it, and I can't remember ever hearing about a serious crash. It's one of those things that sorts itself out; those who don't have the skill to do it won't do it, and other road users tend to be careful around skateboarders, partly because it's so unusual.

Thing with wheels is illegal by default. You can then be not illegal in various ways (registered motor vehicle that meets the construction and use regulations, bicycle that has two independent breaks, etc).

BBC News - E-scooter trial put on hold in Coventry five days after rollout
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-coventry-warwickshire-54164922

Coventry City Council has raised safety concerns amid reports they were being used in pedestrianised areas - against guidelines.

Some residents also complained about them being discarded across the city and people going the wrong way.

All of this, of course, is entirely surprising and could not possibly have been predicted.

I've not been to Coventry for a good few years but I seem to remember that a large part of the town centre is pedestrianised which I suspect is maybe where the issues have arisen.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/oct/13/oslo-police-seize-tuned-electric-scooter-top-speed-36mph

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/nov/17/transport-for-london-gives-go-ahead-for-e-scooters-on-capitals-streets

These things have now popped up all over Taunton, only privately owned ones I have seen in wellington, chaos.

Almost ran into a scooter who undertook me as I was manoeuvring behind and beside several buses. I glanced back to check for traffic, and when I looked ahead the damned thing had suddenly popped up right in front of me, I didn’t ever hear or see it coming.

Edit- maybe they should add a sound effect to the engine, like some electric cars have. Something like this might work https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dDgGMInTqTo

I wonder if this will end up with the same issues as the dockless bikes where only certain scooters are authorised in certain boroughs (and certain parts of boroughs).

As I've said before and will continue to say ad nauseam, e-scooters ought to remain illegal, and it's sad that the DfT has now let go of one of the few things they got right for years. It's depressing that a bit of corporate lobbying will just let this kind of nonsense in.

This sounds like the sort of stuff drivers say about cyclists.

I got a fright this summer as a guy on a de-limited e bike brushed me going past me and then cut into a tiny gap in front with a double decker bus running beside us and behind. Couldn't hear it either, there was no sound at all.

I was on the road bike tapping out a decent speed up a hill so had no expectation of anyone passing me like that, then after he zipped past he flew away ahead. Anyway at the time I felt that on another day that incident might not have gone so well for me as he was so close to clipping a wheel.

e bikes and e scooters are both a total menace on the roads.

Teach kids how to ride them, improve infrastructure, reduce the number of cars.

It was weird to move from Paris to London and suddenly there are no scooters, I actually miss them!

The biggest barrier to safe adoption is the awful braking experience of E-scooters in the wet. The rear tyre locks up and they just drift along at full tilt... I saw a few inexperienced riders wipe out sideways in Paris (only when it was wet).

And sometimes they’re right. When I’m cycling in traffic, I accept that manoeuvring predictably is part of being safe. Most E scooter riders I see in London don’t seem to care about that.

As for the hearing part, I definitely depend more on my hearing when I’m cycling than I do when I’m driving. Having a small silent vehicle undercut me by surprise when I’m checking behind me and am moving at 35km/h isn’t something I had experienced, nor did I expect it. Like French_Touch, now I know.

https://www.businesscloud.co.uk/news/estonian-firm-bolt-to-launch-e-bikes-and-scooters-in-london/

Even fans of e-scooters must admit that the build quality of this offering looks awful. Tiny handlebars attached to a chunky bit of square tube. Can't imagine they'll handle too nicely.

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Yeah, great stealth advertising. :)

I honestly don't think the build quality matters too much, it's just the wrong idea to use those. You absolutely do not want to replace walking or cycling with inactivity.

I hope he was riding his Dear Susan. This information should really accompany every Tweet of his about cycling.