Turns Out E-Scooters Might Be The End of Society

[ajax 2,618]

1 hour ago, gsoda3 said:

Nothing wrong with the scooters, just the people who make bad decisions on them.

Check out how this guy rides. He's a cool dude but the way he rides I fear for his safety.

 

[ChickenSandwich 9,843]

5 minutes ago, ajax said:

Check out how this guy rides. He's a cool dude but the way he rides I fear for his safety.

 

The world needs examples. Just hope they are filming when Darwin forgets his blinker. 

[Guest Lobo]

Many of you would have apparently kept automobiles from coming to market  

[Lhorn 4,916]

That looks awesome. I mean it’s going to create a whole new generation of quadriplegics and the manufacturers will be sued into oblivion because folks who can’t operate their legs well think they are going to ride a motorized tire 25 mph, but it looks cool. 

[ajax 2,618]

23 hours ago, Lhorn said:

That looks awesome. I mean it’s going to create a whole new generation of quadriplegics and the manufacturers will be sued into oblivion because folks who can’t operate their legs well think they are going to ride a motorized tire 25 mph, but it looks cool. 

That's the problem - he makes it look fucking cool as shit. I mean, look at this video right here. It's not only his riding skills, but his video and editing skills However, he's one of the few people with the skills to weave through heavy traffic like that and not die.

They organize big group rides in NYC and San Francisco. I just started riding but I'm not good enough to join them. If I do, I'm going to ride like a sane human that wants to stay alive.

[RPM 26,323]

I prefer to think of e-scooters as Darwin's Little Helper.

[Nivek 16,945]

Motorcycles for pussies.

[futureman 22,487]

On 5/4/2019 at 10:40 AM, Doc Reeves said:

a guy my wife has known since HS fell off and hit his head bad. It’s been about a year and it’s a full on ‘Regarding Henry’ situation. The guy is connected to a big-time family here in TX and they are planning to go scorched earth with a class-action 

I hate those goddamn scooters and probably wish death on most of the fuckwits zipping around on them but your friend is a fucking cunt.  he’s a fucking adult and if he’s dumb enough to ride one of those things he should accept the consequences.   too many people now are fragile pussies that simply refuse to accept responsibility for the results of their own bad decisions.  it’s an exponentially bigger problem than the fucking scooters. 

[Cajun 11,714]

On 5/10/2019 at 2:26 PM, Lobo said:

Many of you would have apparently kept automobiles from coming to market  

That automobiles are established in the market is reason #1 that scooters shouldn't be.

Physics, how does it work?

Edited May 12, 2019 by Cajun

[ztejas 43,480]

On 5/4/2019 at 10:17 PM, Newdoc said:

[Guest Lobo]

2 hours ago, Cajun said:

That automobiles are established in the market is reason #1 that scooters shouldn't be.

Physics, how does it work?

Physics work the same way that the odds a person dying in an automobile are much higher than they are on a scooter.  

Cars and horses and pedestrians didn't get along very well for decades.  They still don't, but thankfully horses moved out of the way. 

Adler's vision zero conveniently skips over the needless deaths in Austin to motorists, bicycle riders, and scooter riders.  Our road system isn't just inconvenient and a time-suck, a great deal of it is woefully unsafe and we've turned down opportunities to address chunks of it in the very recent past.  

[SwanderedTalent 5,761]

13 minutes ago, Lobo said:

we've turned down opportunities to address chunks of it in the very recent past.  

we are quadrupling down on the circa-1984 Austin ethos of "if we don't build it, they won't come"

any day now, it will start working

[Guest Lobo]

I know that we're doubling down on our desire to not properly expand the roads.  But we've also cut a lot of safety corners along the way as well.  Something I was not so prepared to learn about, very troubling that's not just about ease of rush hour, but how some of our roads and intersections are much more dangerous than they need to be because of our desire to place capital resources elsewhere.  

[Cajun 11,714]

3 hours ago, Lobo said:

Physics work the same way that the odds a person dying in an automobile are much higher than they are on a scooter.  

Good try, but not even close.

Imagine the number of scooters sharing the roads with the same number of cars/trucks/etc.  

Now trot out your argument.  Sample sizes ≠ Physics

And, please, let's not revisit the false equivalency of the horse/car/scooter whathaveyou.  Bush League Psych-Out STUFF!

 

Edit: The rest of your post I have no quarrel with.

Edited May 12, 2019 by Cajun

[ztejas 43,480]

Heres my take after losing my e scooter virginity this afternoon. 

Me and my buddy were riding them between deep ellum through Downton to uptown Dallas. 

They are fun but takes a bit to get the hang of. I maybe almost fell once but nothing major. If you are lacking in coordination or have no experience riding scooters I can see how it would be easy to eat shit. 

My friend who was more fucked up ended up falling and scratching his knee and dirtying up his shorts but nothing bad 

It was fun and still kind of exercising with the control you have to display over distance (just light legs and upper body). I never felt like a helmet was needed. Unless you got t- boned by a car or something but in that case you're a fucking dumbass. It isn't any more dangerous than a longboard or bmx. I kind of side with if you want to take the risk go for it - but I do think it's a little too accessible to the mouth breathing demographic that will do shit like run into cars or break an ankle.

Edited May 12, 2019 by ztejas

[ztejas 43,480]

1 hour ago, Cajun said:

Good try, but not even close.

Imagine the number of scooters sharing the roads with the same number of cars/trucks/etc.  

Now trot out your argument.  Sample sizes ≠ Physics

And, please, let's not revisit the false equivalency of the horse/car/scooter whathaveyou.  Bush League Psych-Out STUFF!

 

Edit: The rest of your post I have no quarrel with.

Nah man you're much more likely to die while riding in a car. He's right that it is physics. There is much more potentially dangerous kinetic energy occurring in any car crash than someone being thrown off a scooter 3 inches off of the ground. 

[NeverMarryAStripper 21,907]

Nah man you're much more likely to die while riding in a car. He's right that it is physics. There is much more potentially dangerous kinetic energy occurring in any car crash than someone being thrown off a scooter 3 inches off of the ground. 

Let’s see statistics on deaths per mile traveled for cars as compared to scooters before making any conclusions

[Bobson Dugnutt 0]

That's disappointing.  Would like to have heard how hopping on the friend of your wife turned out. 

[Doc Reeves 6,434]

11 hours ago, futureman said:

I hate those goddamn scooters and probably wish death on most of the fuckwits zipping around on them but your friend is a fucking cunt.  he’s a fucking adult and if he’s dumb enough to ride one of those things he should accept the consequences.   too many people now are fragile pussies that simply refuse to accept responsibility for the results of their own bad decisions.  it’s an exponentially bigger problem than the fucking scooters. 

Seems you’re more interested in his means than the data. 

Believe me, the guy I’m talking about pays for his bad decision of getting on one of those things every single day until lights out

This isn’t a question of people being snowflakes, this is a loophole in common sense city ordinances that are in place around the world. 

This isn’t saying people are fragile, it’s saying that this activity is so fucking dangerously stupid that idiots who do it need to follow minimum safety standards so they don’t waste the time of our emts, Drs, cops and whoever else has to deal with their broken brain. 

[futureman 22,487]

31 minutes ago, Doc Reeves said:

Seems you’re more interested in his means than the data. 

Believe me, the guy I’m talking about pays for his bad decision of getting on one of those things every single day until lights out

This isn’t a question of people being snowflakes, this is a loophole in common sense city ordinances that are in place around the world. 

This isn’t saying people are fragile, it’s saying that this activity is so fucking dangerously stupid that idiots who do it need to follow minimum safety standards so they don’t waste the time of our emts, Drs, cops and whoever else has to deal with their broken brain. 

it’s a fucking scooter.  he’s an adult.  does he need to be told to wear a helmet?  or to not get on the damn thing in the first place?  I think they should all be destroyed and outlawed but still, anyone with half a brain should understand the possible consequences of riding around city streets on a motorized skateboard.  and if I were stupid enough to do it and ate shit and broke my brain I can’t see at all how it’s not 100% my fault.  precisely why I’ll never ride one of those goddamn things. 

[NeverMarryAStripper 21,907]

But if I get in my car with out buckling my fucking seatbelt I get a fucking ticket

[Charles DeMar 221]

In Downtown Austin over the weekend for first time in years.  No news flash, but damn, I was shocked by how many there were.  Wife and I walked a bit and got cut off on the sidewalk no fewer than three times.  One "gentleman" sort of scoffed as we were trying to cross the street and my wife was walking down the little handicap ramp into the crosswalk, like he was in HER way.  Dick.

 

Anyways, add another "old" to the "f the scooters, man" camp.

 

 

[ztejas 43,480]

10 hours ago, Doc Reeves said:

Seems you’re more interested in his means than the data. 

Believe me, the guy I’m talking about pays for his bad decision of getting on one of those things every single day until lights out

This isn’t a question of people being snowflakes, this is a loophole in common sense city ordinances that are in place around the world. 

This isn’t saying people are fragile, it’s saying that this activity is so fucking dangerously stupid that idiots who do it need to follow minimum safety standards so they don’t waste the time of our emts, Drs, cops and whoever else has to deal with their broken brain. 

I don't think it's any more dangerous than snow skiing, snowboarding, skateboarding, riding a bike, etc.

Like I said it's just really cheap and accessible so you have a bunch of idiots hopping on them and being... idiots. The safety of the activity largely depends on the  operator.

Edited May 13, 2019 by ztejas

[Fudge Nuggets 19,206]

12 hours ago, Doc Reeves said:

Seems you’re more interested in his means than the data. 

Believe me, the guy I’m talking about pays for his bad decision of getting on one of those things every single day until lights out

This isn’t a question of people being snowflakes, this is a loophole in common sense city ordinances that are in place around the world. 

This isn’t saying people are fragile, it’s saying that this activity is so fucking dangerously stupid that idiots who do it need to follow minimum safety standards so they don’t waste the time of our emts, Drs, cops and whoever else has to deal with their broken brain. 

So your friend and his family are doing this solely for the public good and not looking for any financial compensation?  Great.

[safe sex 11,735]

1 hour ago, ztejas said:

The safety of the activity largely depends on the  operator.

And everyone around them. There are plenty of ways to be seriously hurt on these scooters even while being the smart/safe operator that you assume yourself to be.

[Sbbruin 21,861]

They are showing up in more and more places around here, but the only place I've ever ridden one was when I was in Austin last fall.  They were EVERYWHERE.  Actually really convenient for an urban area, but it did seem wildly dangerous.  

[ajax 2,618]

The scooters don't belong on sidewalks. They shouldn't be on the road with cars either. There should be a network of dedicated lanes for these types of vehicles. 

But you don't get there magically. No city's going to build the infrastructure without a crisis to drive it. A few lanes here and there isn't enough to get people from A to B. Hence this clusterfuck is a necessary step. I hope it gets worse so we can build the damn thing.

Remember, the alternative is these people hailing Ubers and Lyfts, which has made traffic fuck-awful.

[Trey3216 15,347]

1 hour ago, trauma babe said:

And everyone around them. There are plenty of ways to be seriously hurt on these scooters even while being the smart/safe operator that you assume yourself to be.

I guess we should start regulating walking down the streets as well...

[irishtexan 11,521]

On 5/10/2019 at 2:15 PM, ajax said:

Check out how this guy rides. He's a cool dude but the way he rides I fear for his safety.

 

Wrong. Not a cool dude. Not a cool dude at all.

The main problem with scooters is that they're way too fast for sidewalks and way too slow for streets. I fucking hate them.

[MissingInAction 25,108]

On 5/10/2019 at 12:39 PM, Anastasis said:

It was a good ride while it lasted. 

Narrorator: It was never a good idea.

[safe sex 11,735]

3 hours ago, Trey3216 said:

I guess we should start regulating walking down the streets as well...

Walking and riding those scooters are nowhere near comparable. 

[gyroprotagonist 2,594]

i'm cool with them until it affects me personally, then my opinion may or may not change.  hot take, I know.  Anything to get more cars off the road is a step in the right direction, but cities are going to have to be forced into doing something about them.  Either banning or embracing them by making special lanes after the fact.  

I would like to see the data on injuries between these and hoverboards.  

They are starting to make stuff like this:  https://www.businessinsider.com/a-new-inflatable-collar-is-safer-than-the-traditional-bike-helmet-2018-8 that would not be too bad to carry around if you knew you would be getting on scooters to get around downtown or something.  carrying around a traditional helmet is deal breaker.  people would rather be unsafe than have to carry around one of those.

[gsoda3 3,263]

8 hours ago, Charles DeMar said:

In Downtown Austin over the weekend for first time in years.  No news flash, but damn, I was shocked by how many there were.  Wife and I walked a bit and got cut off on the sidewalk no fewer than three times.  One "gentleman" sort of scoffed as we were trying to cross the street and my wife was walking down the little handicap ramp into the crosswalk, like he was in HER way.  Dick.

 

Anyways, add another "old" to the "f the scooters, man" camp.

 

 

that happens a lot with bikes too.  if people would adhere to the rules of biking while on a scooter that'd go to solve lots of problems.  problem is, scooters are more accessible than bikes so there are a lot of people who have no experience riding bikes in urban settings getting on scooters.  i think it's just a growing pain.  

 

the eyesore that is scooters littering the landscape though, that's another issue that needs to be addressed.

[ajax 2,618]

2 hours ago, irishtexan said:

Wrong. Not a cool dude. Not a cool dude at all.

The main problem with scooters is that they're way too fast for sidewalks and way too slow for streets. I fucking hate them.

He's a cool dude.

 

And your takeaway is that they're not going fast enough? Lol. Sure.

[C-Man 27,231]

When these things started popping up in downtown Dallas, I thought it was an interesting -- albeit potentially -- dangerous addition to getting around the city. I still haven't gotten up the courage to jump on one. At that time I went looking to see where you could ride them. I don't recall the details but it made it seem like you can't ride them on sidewalks in downtown Dallas or Deep Ellum and you also can't ride them on the street when the MPH was a certain speed or higher. I remember thinking that eliminated both streets and sidewalks in downtown/Deep Ellum but nobody is paying attention to those rules. My cousin's husband has started one of these companies in San Antonio.

[CycleTex87 2,972]

I’m not afraid to say I ride them. I’m old, have a bad knee, but am generally in good shape. It hurts to walk several blocks, so I ride the scooter. I’ve ridden a road bike in traffic for 30 years so I know mostly how to ride defensively. I apply the same thought process to the scooters. I’ve ridden in Austin, Kansas City and Denver downtowns.  I see people riding them who have no clue however.  

[SubliminalHorn 6,806]

I’ve ridden them. I don’t ride them long distances and most of the time I’m mostly sober. I don’t have a problem with them. Yeah people are morons. Whattaya gonna do?

[SimonBolivar 10,958]

On 5/4/2019 at 10:40 AM, Doc Reeves said:

 

Anyway, the data is coming in and The data, gathered this fall in Austin, Texas, found that one in every 5,000 rides ended in injury.

 

That doesn't sound that bad

[Twizzler 161]

I remember the hype around Segway and talk of them having such a large impact cities would be designed around them. Maybe not as far off the mark as I thought.

[Auto Driller 2,506]

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1005286

Man facing murder charge after California woman beaten with motorized scooter

May 14, 2019, 4:51 AM ET

By Phil Helsel

A man accused of beating a woman with a motorized scooter is facing a murder charge in her death.

Officers were called to the site of the attack, on a street in Long Beach, California, Monday afternoon, police said in a statement.

Rosa Elena Hernandez, 63, was killed in the attack.

"Detectives believe the suspect physically assaulted the victim and then proceeded to utilize a motorized scooter as a weapon during the assault," police said.

A little more than four hours later, police said they arrested a person of interest, who was booked on a murder charger and is being held in lieu of $2 million bail.

The suspect was not identified by police.

View this graphic on nbcnews.com

The attack appeared to have been random, NBC Los Angeles reported, citing police. Hernandez was walking down the street when a man began attacking her, police told the station.

NBC Los Angeles reported that the man used an electric scooter in the attack.

The Los Angeles Times reported that was a Bird scooter, and that authorities don't believe the attacker and victim knew each other.Bird scooters are dockless e-scooters available to rent.

Police said that the suspect fled on foot after the assault, and the person who was arrested was found at a local business.

Friends and family of Hernandez laid candles Monday night at the spot where she was killed.

"She was a nice lady, always said hi to everybody," neighbor Veronica Morales told NBC Los Angeles, adding that she was well known on the street. "Nobody deserves what that person did," Morales said.

Long Beach is a city on the coast south of Los Angeles.

Phil Helsel is a reporter for NBC News.

[El Diablo 4,232]

If we're going to continue to be a country of independently mobile individuals, that is favoring self propulsion (of sorts) to mass transportation then this is probably just a painful evolutionary step. We'll need to adapt. I wonder what the accident rates are like in countries where this type of transportation predominates. 

[Pam Cummings 9,645]

On 5/12/2019 at 3:41 PM, Lobo said:

I know that we're doubling down on our desire to not properly expand the roads.  But we've also cut a lot of safety corners along the way as well.  Something I was not so prepared to learn about, very troubling that's not just about ease of rush hour, but how some of our roads and intersections are much more dangerous than they need to be because of our desire to place capital resources elsewhere.  

Don't worry, they'll build a toll road to fix it. 😒

 

Also, i've ridden on one and simple common sense told me to be careful with it. People really are idiots who can't be trusted. But like anything else, with awareness it will improve over time.

[Trey3216 15,347]

1 hour ago, Auto Driller said:

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1005286

Man facing murder charge after California woman beaten with motorized scooter

May 14, 2019, 4:51 AM ET

By Phil Helsel

A man accused of beating a woman with a motorized scooter is facing a murder charge in her death.

Officers were called to the site of the attack, on a street in Long Beach, California, Monday afternoon, police said in a statement.

Rosa Elena Hernandez, 63, was killed in the attack.

"Detectives believe the suspect physically assaulted the victim and then proceeded to utilize a motorized scooter as a weapon during the assault," police said.

A little more than four hours later, police said they arrested a person of interest, who was booked on a murder charger and is being held in lieu of $2 million bail.

The suspect was not identified by police.

View this graphic on nbcnews.com

The attack appeared to have been random, NBC Los Angeles reported, citing police. Hernandez was walking down the street when a man began attacking her, police told the station.

NBC Los Angeles reported that the man used an electric scooter in the attack.

The Los Angeles Times reported that was a Bird scooter, and that authorities don't believe the attacker and victim knew each other.Bird scooters are dockless e-scooters available to rent.

Police said that the suspect fled on foot after the assault, and the person who was arrested was found at a local business.

Friends and family of Hernandez laid candles Monday night at the spot where she was killed.

"She was a nice lady, always said hi to everybody," neighbor Veronica Morales told NBC Los Angeles, adding that she was well known on the street. "Nobody deserves what that person did," Morales said.

Long Beach is a city on the coast south of Los Angeles.

Phil Helsel is a reporter for NBC News.

Bird's of a feather murder together. 

[ztejas 43,480]

15 hours ago, C-Man said:

When these things started popping up in downtown Dallas, I thought it was an interesting -- albeit potentially -- dangerous addition to getting around the city. I still haven't gotten up the courage to jump on one. At that time I went looking to see where you could ride them. I don't recall the details but it made it seem like you can't ride them on sidewalks in downtown Dallas or Deep Ellum and you also can't ride them on the street when the MPH was a certain speed or higher. I remember thinking that eliminated both streets and sidewalks in downtown/Deep Ellum but nobody is paying attention to those rules. My cousin's husband has started one of these companies in San Antonio.

I was riding between deep ellum and uptown and it was kind of a mix of using the sidewalk, bike lanes and the street. I was definitely cautious of riding in the actual street, though, mostly because there was almost always a sidewalk, partially because I didn't want to be in the flow of traffic.

In a city like Austin I'm guessing bike lanes should be well equipped to handle the scooter traffic.

@CycleTex87 I agree. Just don't ride like a fucking idiot and it isn't any more dangerous than a bike at all. 

@El Diablo Like SE Asia or Central America? I can't speak to accident rates but I know traffic laws are basically non existent in a lot of those countries. When I was in the Dominican Republic a lot of the locals rode dirt bikes or scooters with almost zero regard for safety. 

[Pato del Muerto 52,529]

45 minutes ago, Trey3216 said:

Bird's of a feather murder together. 

So is a group of escooters a murder?

[Pato del Muerto 52,529]

21 hours ago, ajax said:

The scooters don't belong on sidewalks. They shouldn't be on the road with cars either. There should be a network of dedicated lanes for these types of vehicles. 

But you don't get there magically. No city's going to build the infrastructure without a crisis to drive it. A few lanes here and there isn't enough to get people from A to B. Hence this clusterfuck is a necessary step. I hope it gets worse so we can build the damn thing.

Remember, the alternative is these people hailing Ubers and Lyfts, which has made traffic fuck-awful.

Why isn’t the alternative walking?

[El Diablo 4,232]

8 minutes ago, ztejas said:

@El Diablo Like SE Asia or Central America? I can't speak to accident rates but I know traffic laws are basically non existent in a lot of those countries. When I was in the Dominican Republic a lot of the locals rode dirt bikes or scooters with almost zero regard for safety. 

Yes, like SE Asia, some areas of Europe and Central/South America. It does appear that there are no traffic laws as such and yet they seem to manage. I suspect that most of those folks have their heads on swivels and are infinitely more aware of their surroundings than the average American driver. What appears as chaos to you may not be to them.We're a country that wants to use cruise control, text, etc... all at the same time. I think it will take a cultural shift in attitudes about what constitutes responsible driving  and a greater appreciation for physics to make the transition.

[Brisketexan 105,158]

16 minutes ago, ztejas said:

Just don't ride like a fucking idiot

All available data indicates that this is effectively impossible.  The number of scooter riders I see who AREN'T 1) running traffic signals, 2) weaving in and out of traffic, 3) damned near running down pedestrian after pedestrian is so miniscule as to not be worth mentioning.

[Trey3216 15,347]

4 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

All available data indicates that this is effectively impossible.  The number of scooter riders I see who AREN'T 1) running traffic signals, 2) weaving in and out of traffic, 3) damned near running down pedestrian after pedestrian is so miniscule as to not be worth mentioning.

This is the correct answer.  The scooters are fine. Nothing wrong with them at all and they present an affordable, convenient means of short track transportation.  

 

The problem is, 85% of the American public is full on regard.  

[ztejas 43,480]

9 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

All available data indicates that this is effectively impossible.  The number of scooter riders I see who AREN'T 1) running traffic signals, 2) weaving in and out of traffic, 3) damned near running down pedestrian after pedestrian is so miniscule as to not be worth mentioning.

Well, it's impossible with everything else that is self-operated, too.