Electric Scooters

[ShootingEgg]

4 hours ago, Jaymo said:

I have nothing against E-scoots, only thing I object too,  is ‘anything’ other than pedestrians on pavements. 

Bristol have the E-scooters now and you hire them for as long as you want in a day, but they have to be ridden on either a cycle lane or road. Most people are on the road on them and not wearing any form of protective clothing or helmet etc. It's pretty scary as a driver when one undertakes or cuts you up...

[Saltings]

the law abiding are respectful    ok       but round here they  run roads   pavements  in and out  with no regard for pedestrians  and they are that arrogant they have priority over a car or hgv  that can kill     day or night       no lights dressed in black tracksuits and hoody      if your dealing   its quick and quiet    a neighbour a nice  old boy  retired  in his 70s     its his only mode of transport to two mornings a week little   job     and fishing      some teenage scrotes robbed it off him at   knifepoint  he was not able to walk home  a good Samaritan took him home   a whip round in the neighbour hood got him a new scooter    

Edited May 31, 2021 by Saltings

[Pangolin]

10 hours ago, Yellow Bear said:

This  and  also they classify as a motorised bicycle and should be subject to the same rules and regulations like a moped eg tax, insurance, registration, licence and helmet.

Nah, again this sucks all the fun and convenience out of using them and you'd also have to do the same to electric bikes.

This is what I meant about Britain being stuffy, tax and regulate the joy out of anything.

Just a case of the law being out of touch/date and amendments need to be made for these types of social convenience vehicles.

6 hours ago, ShootingEgg said:

Bristol have the E-scooters now and you hire them for as long as you want in a day, but they have to be ridden on either a cycle lane or road. Most people are on the road on them and not wearing any form of protective clothing or helmet etc. It's pretty scary as a driver when one undertakes or cuts you up...

No different to beind undertaken by a push bike though?

I never wear and never have worn a helmet on a pushbike so I wouldnt bother on a scooter either, people can make their own choices. I dont think it matters if they have any protective gear at all.

Edited June 1, 2021 by Pangolin

[Pangolin]

11 hours ago, Newbie to this said:

Some people enjoy going to a football match and having a punch-up after, is this OK?

If both parties are willing and its somewhere out of the way, then yes.

[Newbie to this]

7 hours ago, 12gauge82 said:

Your examples are daft and you could use extreme examples of anything to prove a point, Dunblane for instance. 

E scooters in general are a minor nuisance. 

So we should pick and choose which laws to obey on a scale of how much of a nuisance the law breaking act is. 

[ferguson_tom]

I think they are a great idea, when you go to city with them they make life very easy being able to hop on and off using the app.

I cant see why the UK feels it needs to do "trials" when so many major cities across the world already use them.

[12gauge82]

1 hour ago, Newbie to this said:

So we should pick and choose which laws to obey on a scale of how much of a nuisance the law breaking act is. 

I didn't say that either. 

[henry d]

Interesting answers, I posted about them in 2019 and the replies there were different, I presume that in the intervening period people have seen more of the regulated scooters around cities and on holiday.

I wonder where the government is thinking of going with them, individual regulations (speed, use, insurance etc), hire only or a mixture?

[TIGHTCHOKE]

18 minutes ago, henry d said:

Interesting answers, I posted about them in 2019 and the replies there were different, I presume that in the intervening period people have seen more of the regulated scooters around cities and on holiday.

I wonder where the government is thinking of going with them, individual regulations (speed, use, insurance etc), hire only or a mixture?

Well if the Government do allow the free use of them surely some registration, regulation and insurance would be required and presumably that would then lead to the same rules for bicycles too!

[12gauge82]

1 hour ago, henry d said:

Interesting answers, I posted about them in 2019 and the replies there were different, I presume that in the intervening period people have seen more of the regulated scooters around cities and on holiday.

I wonder where the government is thinking of going with them, individual regulations (speed, use, insurance etc), hire only or a mixture?

Your almost certainly right, there'll be untold amounts of regulation and bureaucracy involved. 

[mellors]

Has anyone been prosecuted or fined. 

What happens if one collides with a car causing damage or knocks over and badly  injures a pedestrian. 

Do the road legal disabled scooters have insurance. 

Do cyclists never ride on the pavement do they have insurance. 

So it looks like electric scooters will be no different. 

[clangerman]

nothing wrong with the scooters just the tools riding them luckily i drive a land rover only one winner against that bus 

[Zetter]

We have the scheme in Milton Keynes where you can use the hired ones from a couple of companies on the redways. To be honest I think they are great some of them have about a 30K range and if I actually worked in MK rather than outside I would seriously consider it as a car alternative when the legalities are worked out. Its a hell of a lot cheaper than running a car especially if you work a few miles away from home. 

From my experience they are no more of an issue on our redway cycle paths than cyclists as long as everyone remains aware of everyone else using them then no issues. Would I want to be run into with one walking the dog no but also I wouldn't want to be hit by a cyclist pelting it down the redway at 40+ MPH either which from my experience is much more of a risk at the moment. 

You get idiots in all forms of transport unfortunately, currently it seems to be car drivers who havent been on the road for six months and have forgotten how to drive and could probably do with a bit of a refresher.  

[discobob]

20 hours ago, WalkedUp said:

I tend to zip ahead of the others in traffic but on up hill sections the electric motor just doesn’t have the guts for it so I’m slowly caught. I’m less than 100kg and the uphills are not that steep in Liverpool so no idea how it would cope with a proper Yorkshireman in Sheffield. 

so they wouldn't be any good going up the ramp from James Street station then!!!!

[Mice!]

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/15122152/boy-12-serious-hit-car-e-scooter-liverpool/

The problem is they are quick, and quiet, and most people aren't wearing anything high vis or helmets,  I wouldn't go on the main roads these days without them on my push bike, everywhere is far too busy.

Lad at work has an electric bike and he said it can do 40mph, that is damn quick.

 

[udderlyoffroad]

1 hour ago, Zetter said:

Its a hell of a lot cheaper than running a car especially if you work a few miles away from home.

Always assuming you only ever commute on days when the weather is nice, but not too nice, so you don't arrive at the office a sweaty mess.

 

[Zetter]

25 minutes ago, udderlyoffroad said:

Always assuming you only ever commute on days when the weather is nice, but not too nice, so you don't arrive at the office a sweaty mess.

 

Better thank cycling though as you wont be putting any effort in to get there

 

 

[paul1966]

I think with the government committed to the increase in the use of electric cars and such in the near future that scooters like these will eventually be made legal to use. They might as well do it sooner rather than later as scooters are not going to disappear now.  

[henry d]

3 hours ago, Zetter said:

...and if I actually worked in MK rather than outside I would seriously consider it as a car alternative when the legalities are worked out.

I first saw them in the Costa del sol, people using the train system and then the scooter and it seems ideal for commuters, however if working from home becomes the new norm, then they become just toys.

5 hours ago, TIGHTCHOKE said:

Well if the Government do allow the free use of them surely some registration, regulation and insurance would be required and presumably that would then lead to the same rules for bicycles too!

Not sure about cycles, mainly due to the number and history behind them but e scooters can be as it would not be retrospective.

[amateur]

It's not so much the adults riding them that concerns me as the teens and pre-teens that I saw today in Slade Green, zipping through the traffic, on and off the pavements without a pause. All accidents waiting to happen

[Rewulf]

6 hours ago, TIGHTCHOKE said:

Well if the Government do allow the free use of them surely some registration, regulation and insurance would be required and presumably that would then lead to the same rules for bicycles too!

Ive been meaning to do a thread on these for a while now, but every time I tried to pen it , it made me sound like a grumpy old **** !

Nottingham has the WIND scooters , 12 p a minute through an app, they started a 12 month trial in October with 200 scooters, the company has negotiated a deal where they are road legal, they have lights ect, and are GPS tracked with speed limitations within the inner city areas.
The complaints started straight away , mainly about where they are left, outside peoples front doors , in the road, in peoples gardens, blocking pavements for disabled persons and guide dogs.
Besides the fact that a ready mode of transport had been laid on for Nottinghams younger wannabe drug dealers, the company 'listened' to residents complaints , noted them , and them added 300 more to the 'trial'.
At the moment its difficult to drive down many roads in Nottingham and not see a pile of abandoned WIND scooters, some appear to have been smashed up to steal the batteries, and a favourite trick is to leave one in the middle of the road.

Along with privately bought scooters , some of which are capable of 60 mph, the users of these, and the WIND scooters have little regard for the highway code, they ride on pavements , the road (both illegal for non WIND scooters) often you will see a scooter coming up the wrong side of the road, at night , no lights, dark clothing, masked and sun glasses, they will them curse and / or give dirty looks for your audacity for being on the same road as them with your insurance, tax MOT and licence.
They actually make cyclists seem not so bad !!

The police have made it clear through their Facebook page , that non WIND scooters are NOT to be used on roads or pavements, it is illegal to do so, and they can impound the scooter if they see it happening under a sec 59.
However they have used these powers literally a handful of times.....
I drive to work and home around 6 miles each way through the city everyday , and I will see around 50 e scooters being used erratically and dangerously every time.

It seems many e scooter users have circumvented all laws regarding road use, and are using motorised vehicles illegally on the back of the green agenda.

[ehb102]

We have them in a village with rubbish bus links that is cycling distance from the City Centre. They are an excuse not to fund the buses, that's for sure. Apart from the visual irritation at the way they are abandoned on street corners, they are a good alternative to a taxi for the agriculture workers/college students etc. I keep meaning to have a go on one myself. 

[Pangolin]

1 minute ago, ehb102 said:

We have them in a village with rubbish bus links that is cycling distance from the City Centre. They are an excuse not to fund the buses, that's for sure. Apart from the visual irritation at the way they are abandoned on street corners, they are a good alternative to a taxi for the agriculture workers/college students etc. I keep meaning to have a go on one myself. 

You'll be hooked. 

[islandgun]

 

Thought this might be of interest  https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/18802892.illegal-e-scooters-can-seized-used-roads-warn-police/

[Rewulf]

48 minutes ago, islandgun said:

 

Thought this might be of interest  https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/18802892.illegal-e-scooters-can-seized-used-roads-warn-police/

Like I said above , its OK the police rattling on about how illegal they are, the thousands of daily users in my town dont seem too bothered, and neither do the police.