Experts at the Royal Automobile Club of Queensland (RACQ) and Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital (RBWH) are pushing for major safety reforms in the e-scooter industry, suggesting the use of full-face helmets for private riders and a transition to sit-down scooter designs for rental devices.
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These recommendations come in response to mounting evidence of serious injuries and fatalities associated with current e-scooter designs and usage patterns. A Jamieson Trauma Institute study, funded by the RACQ and the RBWH Foundation, has exposed critical e-scooter injury trends.
The research revealed that over one-third of emergency presentations involved riders who were traveling at speeds exceeding the legal 25 km/h limit. Significantly, more than half of these injured riders were classified under the second-highest urgency triage category, indicating the severe nature of their injuries.
It’s also revealed that there were eight fatalities from Personal Mobility Devices in Queensland in 2024, with one-third of emergency room patients exceeding legal speed limits. Most concerningly, standard helmets are failing to prevent serious facial injuries.
Dr Michael Kane, Head of Public Policy at RACQ, said that the research underscored the urgent necessity for comprehensive reforms to mitigate the risk of devastating facial and head injuries associated with both privately owned and rental e-scooters.
“It’s clear many riders on privately owned e-scooters are speeding, and sustaining more severe injuries, but riders on hired devices are still getting seriously injured,” Dr Kane said.
Professor Michael Schuetz, JTI Director and RBWH Orthopaedic Surgeon, highlighted the alarming prevalence of severe injuries directly linked to excessive speed, noting that upper limb fractures and head trauma emerged as the most frequent and serious types of e-scooter-related injuries in the study.
Response from the E-Scooter Industry
Responding to critical medical research, Lime Mobility, a key e-scooter provider operating across multiple Brisbane suburbs, including Manly, is taking proactive steps to address growing safety challenges.
A Lime Mobility spokeswoman revealed that their new seated scooter design, which will be released in Brisbane soon, is fundamentally constructed with rider protection in mind. Lime’s latest seated scooter model features enhanced suspension technology and wheels with a larger diameter, designed to provide riders with improved stability and better ground contact.
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Dr Kane urged the new government to factor in the findings of the JTI research when implementing the next set of e-scooter reforms and encouraged consumers to reassess which scooter model is safest for them.
Published 29-November-2024