It's generally agreed upon that the more alternatives there are to driving a car, the better it is for the mobility of the vast majority of people. Be it out of budget constraints, the lack of space, or sustainability and environmental preservation, it's clear the personal mobility devices are paving the way for the future.
Unsurprisingly however, as more and more people hop aboard electric scooters, the number of accidents involving these two wheelers will rise as well. Indeed, this issue has been acknowledged by a good number of scooter-sharing platforms that have installed safety measures on their scooters in order to prevent drunk and intoxicated individuals from operating them. However, it would seem that only so much can be done to address the safety risks posed by the prolific use of e-scooters.
In Paris, France alone, there were more than 400 accidents involving personal electric mobility devices in 2022. Personal electric mobility devices include electric skateboards, hoverboards, and yes, electric scooters, too. That said, it isn't exactly clear if pedal-assist e-bikes are part of this category, but based on the report provided by the Paris Police Prefecture, this doesn't appear to be the case.
More specifically, there were a total of 408 accidents involving electric mobility devices, of which 459 people were injured. Unfortunately, 2022 resulted in the death of three individuals. Now, of course, when looking at these numbers, it's important to take into account the number of electric scooter users in total. In Paris, Lime alone reports in excess of 16 million scooter rides for 2022. Lime is just one player in the city's e-scooter sharing segment, not to mention folks who ride personally-owned two-wheelers.
According to Lime, its scooter sharing platform boasted a 99.99 percent safety rating for 2022. Nevertheless, as technology advances, electric scooters too are becoming safer and safer. Here on InsideEVs, I've shared quite a few new and exciting scooter concepts that could usher in safer personal mobility. Check some of them out below.
Is It Worth Reinventing The Electric Scooter?
Sources: Clean Rider, Trend Detail