Forum Topic

E-scooters + Tfl

It appears (from another website) that the trial of e-scooters will ban their use on pavements and consign them to cycleways. That will be interesting for cyclists who normally travel faster.

Jeffrey Cope ● 2172d18 Comments

Presumably the timing of this trial is to stress test their safety at the worst possible time of the year. With foul weather and short daylight hours what could be a  better time to see what happens?Why wait to the Spring when conditions would be more conducive and give road users a far better chance to adapt. No, carry on regardless, it's all the fashion these days and ever so pc.

Adrian Irving ● 2171d

'That will be interesting for cyclists who normally travel faster'Rightly or wrongly in terms of legal use there were a fair amount of E-scooters being used on CS3 in town. Some of them are seriously fast and I think having them on the cycleway is a good solution,  far better than their current use on pavements.

Matthew Swain ● 2171d

In old times of pre covid wfw(working from work) i was often overtaken on the inside by E-scooters in 20mph zones which was a shock the first time it happened. My colleague bought a £500 one and he was told they had to sell it with the legal 15mph limiter and no need for insurance but they could make it go faster to 25mph.I am thinking of getting one as my bike insurance will cover the cost and I can travel at 25mph into work when we go back to WFW.

James Smith-Jones ● 2171d

But how are they going to enforce it?  My understanding is the Highway Code states cyclists should not ride on pavements but they still do and there is nothing, or no one, to stop them.

Carol Burge ● 2171d

Errr ... won't that be illegal James? What's the rush anyway? 15mph probably still faster than cars in rush hour on a lot of roads. And remember the small wheels of e-scooters make them a lot more vulnerable to potholes etc.

Andrew Jones ● 2171d

If they enforce it, wait and see it could be an improvement. 😳

Janice Evans ● 2171d

I brought this up on here a few months back when i nearly had an accident on my motorbike when an e-scooter with small wheels face planted in front of me hitting a pot hole. The one my colleague bought has bigger wheels and I had a go in it and surprisingly sturdy, responsive both accelerating and braking, lights, all the whistles. Yes, I believe there is going to be a big problem here with everyone fine tuning their e-scooters to go faster until they have a serious accident and get sued. For now, when I buy mine,I will keep it to 15mph and use the empty cycle lanes which will still be quicker than using my motor bike.

James Smith-Jones ● 2171d

Small wheels are not great, my fold up bike has them and you do feel bumps a lot more.

Janice Evans ● 2171d

There is no way I'd want to be doing 15 or 20mph with wheels that small.  We are going to see a lot of accidents with people going over their handlebars.Braking will also be a problem at those kinds of speeds.  I don't know if they even have brakes, or whether you are just meant to step off.  If they have brakes, it's over the handlebar time again given how small the front wheel is.You are going to be far safer on a bike than on one of these.  The bigger wheels will handle pot holes far better.These things might have a use.  For example, someone who gets the train into town, and then wants a scooter for the last mile or two, but for a full length commute into town, I'd go with a bike any day.Given how small the wheels are, and the problems with braking, they should be restricted to 10mph or thereabouts.

Al Webber ● 2171d

Does anybody know if the E-Scooter trials took place?https://www.gov.uk/guidance/e-scooter-trials-guidance-for-users#driving-licencesIt just seems that they are all over the place.  If car drivers can't read or understand road signs - how can we expect those who drive these all over the place to understand them?

Philippa Bond ● 2171d

The vast majority of E-scooters you see are illegal and are not part of the proposed trial scheme.That's not to say the police will do anything about them however.

Jeffrey Cope ● 2169d

Any accident or mishap involving an Escooter user will of course be blamed on the nearest motor car or van/lorry/bus driver - inevitably!

Jennifer Selig ● 2169d

It could be that cycles and e-scooters get a right of way over motorists at junctions etc.

Philippa Bond ● 2169d

My worry as a user of scooter or car would be that a scooter comes a cropper on a pothole or other obstacle straight into the path of a car. Bikes have bigger wheels and can probably absorb this kind of thing better.

Claire Moran ● 2169d

No they won't.

Adrian Irving ● 2168d

James' comment about nearly hitting one of the e-scooters with the small wheels when it hit a pothole shows a problem with them.

Philippa Bond ● 2168d

Does anyone really believe that the riders of e-scooters will pay the slightest attention to any form of regulation or signage?

Colin Jordan ● 2168d

We live in hope 🚦

Janice Evans ● 2167d