Rising Electric Scooter Accidents Prompt Urgent Safety Measures
September 17, 2024
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The rise in accidents involving electric scooters has become a major concern, according to Karolina Molnár, Deputy Secretary of State for Strategic Affairs.
At the Safety Week event in Budapest, Ms. Molnár highlighted that electric scooters, along with pedestrians and cyclists, are involved in a significant portion of accidents. “Experience in recent years has shown that pedestrians, cyclists, and, more recently, electric scooters are involved in around a third to half of all accidents,” she said.
Most of these accidents occur in Budapest, with scooter users often being the cause rather than the victims.
József Óberling, Head of the Traffic Police Department at Hungarian Police, noted that the number of accidents involving electric scooters is increasing monthly. He stated, “drivers of electric scooters are often unaware of the driving dynamics of their vehicles,” adding that scooters can reach speeds of 70-80 kilometers per hour despite the riders’ limited knowledge of the Highway Code.
He also pointed out that many scooter users do not wear protective gear, increasing the risk of serious injury.
By the end of July, there had been 320 accidents involving electric scooter drivers in Hungary, accounting for three percent of all road accidents resulting in personal injury. Mr. Óberling emphasized that the lack of specific regulations for electric scooters complicates data collection and accident prevention efforts.
Fact
The rise of e-scooter accidents is not limited to Hungary. Across Europe, incidents involving e-scooters have sparked widespread concern. In 2022, while the number of e-scooter trips increased by 39%, injury rates dropped by 19%, signaling some improvements in safety, writes Micro-Mobility for Europe. Yet, Germany’s data shows that the risk of fatal incidents for e-scooter riders remains comparable to cyclists, with fatalities at around 0.013 per million kilometers traveled writes Euro Weekly News. In the UK, according to the official government information there were over 1,350 e-scooter-related casualties between mid-2022 and mid-2023, emphasizing the ongoing need for stricter regulations.
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