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Electric scooter “mayhem” sounds like when cars were introduced

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Re: Electric scooter “mayhem” sounds like when cars were introduced

#21

Post by gamblor956 »

FooHentai wrote: post #8
justboxing wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> As for the self righteousness of "only peds belong on sidewalks", I get tired of that Nothing self-righteous about that. Sidewalks are -- as the name itself suggests - meant for WALKING on the SIDE of the road, not for riding scooters and other vehicles which pose a danger to other people walking. Only exception being people on wheelchairs, but they aren't driving at break-neck speeds like an electric scooter rider…

If we're gonna play that silly game, what about roads, from the old English rād meaning 'journey on horseback'.

Why is the Old English meaning of the precursor word relevant? The modern word is road and it means thoroughfare.

Re: Electric scooter “mayhem” sounds like when cars were introduced

#22

Post by xivzgrev »

I think bird fucked up in SF by not giving clear-enough guidelines to their users (or not taking it seriously enough). People just need to treat these like a bike, basically.

1) ride in the street, not on the sidewalk. The only thing that should be on sidewalks are people walking and wheelchairs (disabled people walking). 2) park it next to an area where people expect bikes to be parked, like a bike rack or parking meter or street post. but not next to a fire hydrant, someone's home/garage, in the middle of the walkway, etc. I've seen all three of those.

Re: Electric scooter “mayhem” sounds like when cars were introduced

#23

Post by mattthebaker »

justboxing wrote: post #4

These Electric Scooters in San Francisco have become a total nuisance. I've seen quite a few riders ride them on the sidewalks and 1 person even ran into a dude on a wheelchair who was trying to get onto the sidewalk after crossing the road on his wheelchair. The last safe place for Pedestrians and disabled persons -- the Sidewalk -- is under attack. The startups that have created this nuisance also park these scoote…

Police just need to start issuing tickets. Seems like a solid and easy revenue stream. Both riding on the sidewalk and riding without a helmet is illegal. Haven't seen any rider wearing one.

CA Law: "An operator of a motorized scooter must be at least 16 years old, possess a valid drivers license or instruction permit, and wear a helmet.

A motorized scooter may be operated on a bicycle path, trail or bikeway, but not on a sidewalk. On the roadway, it must be operated in the bicycle lane, if there is one. On roads without bicycle lanes, motorized scooters may operate where the speed limit is 25 mph or less, and shall be ridden as close to the right hand curb as possible, except to pass or turn left."

Re: Electric scooter “mayhem” sounds like when cars were introduced

#24

Post by FooHentai »

gamblor956 wrote: post #21
FooHentai wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If we're gonna play that silly game, what about roads, from the old English rād meaning 'journey on horseback'.

Why is the Old English meaning of the precursor word relevant? The modern word is road and it means thoroughfare.

Right. It's almost like the name of something has no bearing on what the thing could be used for.

Re: Electric scooter “mayhem” sounds like when cars were introduced

#25

Post by woolvalley »

Replace these scooters with bicycles and all of the same issues apply.

Imagine if real self locking bicycles were somehow theft proof and private citizens started putting their bicycles willy nilly everywhere. That is the only new issue that is generated by these companies, and creating more parking for bikes and other low speed vehicles is the eventual solution.

The fact that these dockless bike companies have effectively created the 'theft proof' bike is pretty amazing on it's own.

Re: Electric scooter “mayhem” sounds like when cars were introduced

#26

Post by lurquer »

FooHentai wrote: post #8
justboxing wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> As for the self righteousness of "only peds belong on sidewalks", I get tired of that Nothing self-righteous about that. Sidewalks are -- as the name itself suggests - meant for WALKING on the SIDE of the road, not for riding scooters and other vehicles which pose a danger to other people walking. Only exception being people on wheelchairs, but they aren't driving at break-neck speeds like an electric scooter rider…

If we're gonna play that silly game, what about roads, from the old English rād meaning 'journey on horseback'.

What's your point? When roads were reserved for horses, would you ride your donkey on the sidewalk?

Re: Electric scooter “mayhem” sounds like when cars were introduced

#27

Post by yorwba »

leohutson wrote: post #11
justboxing wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> As for the self righteousness of "only peds belong on sidewalks", I get tired of that Nothing self-righteous about that. Sidewalks are -- as the name itself suggests - meant for WALKING on the SIDE of the road, not for riding scooters and other vehicles which pose a danger to other people walking. Only exception being people on wheelchairs, but they aren't driving at break-neck speeds like an electric scooter rider…

Well reflexively referring to the DEFINITION of a WORD is not an argument. When there are no dedicated cycleways, either pedestrians share with at least some cyclists or scooterists or you have children cycling on the road.

When there are pedestrians, cyclists and cars sharing a space with only two different speed zones, cyclists driving on the sidewalk will have to limit themselves to walking speed, or cars driving on the same road as bicycles need to slow down to cyclist speed.

The same "children cycling on the road" argument (which is only dangerous if the cars on the road are going faster than the children) can be applied to children walking on the sidewalk where people cycle at full speed.

Re: Electric scooter “mayhem” sounds like when cars were introduced

#28

Post by hndamien »

fstuff wrote: post #12
ryanobjc wrote: post #5

I initially was bah humbugy about these scooters, but after reading an article that points out we have acres of space devoted to private automobiles, and that it really wouldn't be hard to accommodate these electric scooters, I changed my mind. They look fun, they seem more flexible than the hard-wired go-bike stations, and they don't seem super expensive. It's pretty obvious that our cities are broken, and SF needs…

>As for the self righteousness of "only peds belong on sidewalks", I get tired of that. I strongly disagree with this. I've owned an electric scooter for over a year now and I learned real fast that it's super dangerous to ride on the sidewalk. The problem with pedestrians is that they are not looking out for scooters. People will wander into your path and depending on how fast you're going you may collide. Also you…

Drive slower around pedestrians. The burden is on you.

Re: Electric scooter “mayhem” sounds like when cars were introduced

#29

Post by c22 »

fstuff wrote: post #12
ryanobjc wrote: post #5

I initially was bah humbugy about these scooters, but after reading an article that points out we have acres of space devoted to private automobiles, and that it really wouldn't be hard to accommodate these electric scooters, I changed my mind. They look fun, they seem more flexible than the hard-wired go-bike stations, and they don't seem super expensive. It's pretty obvious that our cities are broken, and SF needs…

>As for the self righteousness of "only peds belong on sidewalks", I get tired of that. I strongly disagree with this. I've owned an electric scooter for over a year now and I learned real fast that it's super dangerous to ride on the sidewalk. The problem with pedestrians is that they are not looking out for scooters. People will wander into your path and depending on how fast you're going you may collide. Also you…

Scooters barreling down the sidewalk should use the far side, away from blind doorways, and, obviously, should barrel a lot slower when there are a lot of people out.

Re: Electric scooter “mayhem” sounds like when cars were introduced

#30

Post by Tuxer »

ryanobjc wrote: post #5

I initially was bah humbugy about these scooters, but after reading an article that points out we have acres of space devoted to private automobiles, and that it really wouldn't be hard to accommodate these electric scooters, I changed my mind. They look fun, they seem more flexible than the hard-wired go-bike stations, and they don't seem super expensive. It's pretty obvious that our cities are broken, and SF needs…

I used one today for the first time, and loved them. Faster than an uber, 3$ instead of 10, environmentally responsible, and fun to ride. As long as we fine people for being assholes (riding on the sidewalks, parking in stupid places) I think they're a great step forward.
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