Scooter Media Brief: Then the CDC Rode In

Planetizen has been gathering electric scooter news for months now, and for a while the narratives were holding steady—cities were banning electric scooter share, people were embracing them, riders were ending up in the hospital, and scooter companies were launching operations without permits.

But then, this month, the Centers for Disease Control changed the arc of history by launching its first study of the public health impacts of electric scooters. According to an article by Dan Solomon, the study will take place in Austin, and seek to find hard data on the health risks of electric scooters. "It will be the first study of its kind, focusing 'on 37 EMS calls and 68 scooter injuries reported through syndromic surveillance conducted at area hospitals.'"

The study could provide an important step toward a more complete understanding of the consequences of the sudden popularity of electric scooters, and one that could also answer to at least one of the modes more measured and thoughtful, skeptics. Angie Schmitt's take on the electric scooter craze, blasted semi-frequently to Twitter, is more than worthy of amplification:

Here's the safety standard I think we should have for e-scooters:
-Do they make us safer overall than a situation with no e-scooters at minimum?
-And people using them well informed about the risks?
-Is the equipment as safe as possible?

— Angie Schmitt (@schmangee) December 5, 2018

People are really lecturing me about how cars are dangerous. HEY GUYS I KNOW THAT.

I want to have a discussion about e-scooters that is a little more nuanced than cars are bad so it's okay if tech companies introduce a new tech in a way that ends up hurting a lot of people.

— Angie Schmitt (@schmangee) December 5, 2018

How do 15-mph Lime e-scooters perform on potholes? I don't think we actually know.

It is objectively crazy that they have done millions of trips all over the nation without the public having a good answer to that question.

— Angie Schmitt (@schmangee) December 7, 2018

People keep saying why focus on scooter safety when cars are dangerous.

Ignoring them would be defensible I guess. But urbanists are LOUDLY defending e-scooters from some serious safety concerns raised by third parties, doctors, based pretty much on blind faith.

— Angie Schmitt (@schmangee) December 7, 2018

There is still a lot of work left to do to figure out how electric scooters to fit into the mix of travel modes. Here's the latest news and commentary on that societal project.

National News

• For a small fee, entrepreneurs can now manage their own fleet of Bird e-scooters (TechCrunch, November 27)
• Electric scooters are now disrupting wrists, elbows and heads (CNET, November 28)
• Electric scooter company Bird is being sued for trespass (Quartz, December 4)
• Scooter Firm Chases Funding to Staunch Losses (The Information, December 9)
• Study: Bird doesn't do enough to promote safe riding on social media (Smart Cities Dive, December 12)

National Commentary

• Scooter company Bird says riders should wear helmets. Its Instagram suggests otherwise (Quartz, November 28)
• Scooters Are Suddenly Everywhere. What Should Cities Be Doing About It? (Governing, November 27)
• The scooter stampede of 2018 is great news for urban transportation (Vox, December 5)
• New Mobility Advice for Cities (Eno Transportation, December 5)

Local News

• Portland’s E-Scooters Didn’t Squelch Bike Share Use. In Fact, They Might Have Helped. (Willamette Week, November 26)
• E-scooters scoot for the season, giving St. Paul time to tweak policy (Pioneer Press, November 27)
• Dockless bike, scooter surge on way as 12 companies apply for DC permits (WTOP, November 27)
• Electric Scooters And Bikes Will Be Coming To Some Austin Trails Starting Next Month (KUT, November 27)
• Lyft scooters land on Austin streets (Curbed Austin, December 4)
• Athens bans Bird scooters for up to one year (The Red & Black, December 4)
• Denver may force scooters into bike lanes and make other changes (after a guy got slapped) (The Denver Post, December 5)
• Scooter Accidents Have Nashville's Trauma Center Fretting About Head Injuries (Nashville Public Radio, December 6)
• The CDC’s First Study of Dockless Electric Scooters Will Happen in Austin (Texas Monthly, December 7)
• Scooter mechanic, once homeless, says cheap rides now help him pay rent (San Francisco Chronicle, December 7)
• Dockless E-Scooters Hit Streets of Chicago (NBC Chicago, December 12)

Local Commentary

• It’s Time for Denver to Rethink Electric Scooters (5280, November 14)
• ‘Ask the Trauma Docs!’ Mayor Durkan Says Scooters Are Too Dangerous (The Urbanist, December 4)
• A Case for Electric Scooters in Seattle (Seattle Magazine, December 7)