Stop The Scoot:  E-scooters have became a lot more popular over this past year causing a lot of concern for traffic safety

In recent years, electric scooters have taken over Prairie Village, Fairway and Mission Hills, causing safety issues for drivers in the area and even the kids on the scooters themselves.

While electric scooters have been around since 1996, they’ve become more popular with ages between 8-14, as a way to get around quickly without a drivers license. 

Sophomore Fritz Adams rides his E-scooter to and from school everyday because he can’t drive yet. 

“I got my scooter a month into the school year because my mom couldn’t pick me up from school,” Adams said.”  [I] walked [to school] at first but [riding scooters is] a lot more efficient.” 

Instead of walking, biking or even skateboarding, electric scooters have started to take over due to the convenience of just pushing a button. The scooters are easy to access with them being widely available at the Plaza, The Village and Downtown. Kids even have bought their own now to use around their neighborhoods. 

Kids scootering around with no regards to the traffic laws are causing drivers to experience road rage and aggravation like honking and speeding. The injury rate for E-scooters has increased from 6 per 100,000 people to 19 per 100,000 people nationally, according to National Center of Biology. 

The East SRO’s say they’ve seen a lot more scooters in the bike racks recently compared to other years. Scooters can be dangerous for not only drivers but for riders themselves as they can lose control and cant get back in control most times. 

Sophomore Will Ballard was in a E-scooter crash when he skinned the whole right side of his body. He wasn’t following the 20-mph speed limit and proceeded to go faster then tipped over.

“I saw the sign but didn’t think anything of it and went faster,” Ballard said. “[I] tipped over the the left on the way to my friends house and scraped my elbow and then it got infected.”

Ballard felt weary about riding his scooter again, but has gone on a couple of rides since the accident and has followed the traffic rules more intentionally. 

On Oct. 7, they had a presentation at the Prairie Village city council meeting to discuss E-scooters about trying to pass new laws for scooter safety around Prairie Village and Mission Hills. 

When driving, especially on busier roads, the kids on scooters can’t reach the cars speed limits which makes it harder for someone in a car to pass them, according to SRO Jermey Shull.

“My personal feeling is, I hate driving down 75th Street and being behind a bicycle or scooter,” Shull said. “It happens all the time if the side walks open I don’t see why you can’t be on the sidewalk especially on a main street like that.” 

The rules for E-scooters are similar to the rules for cars with a couple exceptions. The city statue says if you wait long enough at a red light then you can go if it’s clear. Another exception being that scooters are supposed to be in the bike lane and not directly in the road. 

“I once pulled over a bicyclist for not stopping at a stop light to give them a warning and educate them that they have obey the traffic laws.” Shull said. 

In order to access the scooters, you have to download an app — different apps depending on the brand of scooter — and then put in your credit card and select the amount of time you want to have the scooter. The app will charge you by the amount of time you have the scooter.  

“I hate E-scooters so much,” junior Mary Green said. “They are always swerving into the road and they are so dangerous and never have helmets on. It’s like they want to get hit.”

Freshman Walker Bennish uses his E- scooter frequently when he needs to hangout with his friends that are close to his house or to go to the village to get food with his friends. 

“I think electric scooters are practical but people just need to watch out for other people like drivers and pedestrians,” Bennish said.