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Though laws differ nationwide, in many cities, riding e-scooters on sidewalks is banned, with Denver being a notable exception before its city council outlawed the devices on sidewalks this week. In some cities, such as Austin and Washington, riding on sidewalks is permitted in some areas but not in others.
Two of the largest e-scooter companies, Lime and Bird, say that safety is a top priority and that they encourage riders to follow local regulations. Lime says the company is investing more than $3 million to “promote safe-riding behavior and proper etiquette.”
Bird says the company provides in-app safety information tailored to local laws. In some cities, the company also employs “Bird Watchers,” whose job it is to ensure the company’s devices are “parked and picked up correctly,” a Bird representative said. “Bird instructs riders to follow all local rules regarding e-scooter riding. We are deeply committed to the safety and well-being of the entire community, and so we make a concerted effort in every city where we operate to provide safety information to our riders that reflects their city’s rules.”
Regardless of local laws, critics say, scooter riders — often lacking access to bike lanes and hoping to avoid speeding cars — frequently take refuge on crowded walkways. The results can be deadly.
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In August, a Spanish teenager riding an electric scooter while reportedly looking at his phone struck a 90-year-old woman out for her daily walk, according to the newspaper El País. The victim died due to severe head injuries several days later, becoming the first pedestrian publicly identified as being killed by an e-scooter. According to El País, prosecutors have said the teenager may face involuntary manslaughter charges.
Efforts to confirm details from the case, such as the defendant’s name, were unsuccessful.
A month earlier, Cody Daniels said, he was walking out of a parking garage in downtown Dallas when he was mowed down by a man traveling “full speed” on a Lime scooter. The rider left the scene.
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The 200-pound 32-year-old was left with scrapes on his knee and face, as well as a deep gash above his right eye that required seven stitches.
He couldn’t pay for a lawyer, and with no way to track down the rider, Daniels said, he paid a $250 urgent-care medical bill himself and tried to “move on.”
Though his physical injuries healed, he said, the accident has made him anxious.
“I’m paranoid now,” said Daniels, who lives and works in an area where packs of e-scooter riders are commonplace. “Every time I turn the corner, I peek out real quick to make sure somebody isn’t coming on a scooter. I’m always looking out for them everywhere I go.”
In October, multiple pedestrians joined a class-action lawsuit in Los Angeles County Superior Court, accusing Lime and Bird, as well as other e-scooter companies, of “gross negligence” and “aiding and abetting assault.”
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Responding to the allegations, Bird said cars “remain the greatest threat to commuters.”
Lime said the company is reviewing the complaint.
How will the lawsuit fare? Legal experts say the patchwork of differing rules suggests that establishing liability in cases involving e-scooters and pedestrian injuries will largely depend on where accidents take place and the circumstances. In the coming years, they say, test cases will give the industry a clearer definition of liability.