I would be glad to not see scooters as the enemy if they weren't so dangerous for everyone involved. Though I guess space is a big factor in that, now that I think about it.
> I would be glad to not see scooters as the enemy if they weren't so dangerous for everyone involved.
There's absolutely no comparison between the dangers of scooters and cars. Every person who decides to use a scooter instead of driving or taking a taxi is having a huge positive effect on safety.
The thing is, cars operate on roads, while pedestrians operate, largely, on sidewalks. Roads have lights and signals to help mediate situations where pedestrians and cars need to use the same stretch of road. Pedestrians only really need to worry about cars at crosswalks, and even then, the most dangerous situations are cars making left turns (who can't see the cross walk in use).
Scooters are vehicles and should operate along side cars. The reason scooter rides don't drive one the roads with cars? Because it fucking dangerous. They want safety, and they want it at the expense of the safety of others.
A scooter on the road is a net gain to safety. But a scooter on a sidewalk is a net loss.
> cars operate on roads, while pedestrians operate, largely, on sidewalks.
In theory yes, but in practice most cities do a terrible job of separating cars and pedestrians. Here in NYC a pedestrian dies in a crosswalk almost every day, and on a sidewalk much more often than you'd hope. Here's one from last week: https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2022/02/10/breaking-careless-suv...
> A scooter on the road is a net gain to safety. But a scooter on a sidewalk is a net loss.
And that's how they (and bikers) use those things aggressively. They have no concerns for the people who have the right to be on the sidewalk. (In Chicago there is an ordinance against both on the sidewalk) Remind a biker/scooter on the sidewalk about the bike line.. they act like you just shot at their family.
Counterpoint: These scooters go 20 MPH and there's no oversight on where or how they are used. I walk around a 'pedestrian only' lake every day, and these scooters come about literally 2 inches from me going 20 mph every 2-3 minutes. Usually they are driven by (likely drunk) teenagers.
My daily walk is incredibly more dangerous and stressful due to these scooters existing.
Maybe it depends on the cities but where I live, these scooters are limited to about 12.5 mph (20 km/h), and are supposed to share the space with bikes on the bike lanes and road, not on the sidewalk.
So while they are indeed parked on the sidewalk everywhere, I do not see them as dangerous at all.
That's a pretty different situation than what people who walk around cities for transportation deal with. I have no objections to banning scooters, bikes, etc from recreational pedestrian areas.
You are right that there is no comparison, and I haven't made one. Scooters are safer than cars, but me wanting them gone does not mean I want those people to be driving instead.
You don't know me. Me saying scooters are dangerous does not, in any way shape or form, imply that I think cars are safe. They are death machines that I would also very much like to see gone.
Yes they are. Cars are separated from pedestrians. Scooters and e-bikes aren’t. There is always some jerk with scooter trying to push through the cyclists on the bike lane or show his driving skills between pedestrians when I go to the office.
