HMC shares best practices for safe e-scooter use in Qatar

Tribune News Network Doha The Hamad Injury Prevention Program (HIPP), Hamad Trauma Center (HTC) of Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) has advised families and...

Tribune News NetworkDohaThe Hamad Injury Prevention Program (HIPP), Hamad Trauma Center (HTC) of Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) has advised families and residents to practice proven safe e-scooter use specially during Ramadan in Qatar.Globally, e-scooters are a new and trendy means of personal transportation potentially improving micromobility for many road users. Recently, there are even e-scooter rideshare options available here in Doha. User convenience, environmental concerns and even transportation costs have all been cited as rationale for their increasing use. While it seems inevitable that the number of scooter users and scooters will increase, what the general public does not know is the great risks they face when using them and what are the proven means of increasing one’s safety when using one.E-scooters have been introduced and widely used in many cities and towns around the world; however, a pattern has emerged in almost all of these locations. Only after multiple e-scooter crashes resulted in fatalities or severely disabling injuries have e-scooters been banned or heavily regulated.“HIPP hopes that we will be able to implement and enforce proven regulations that will improve the safe use of e-scooters and prevent any further fatalities or injuries in Qatar. Let us not only embrace new trends in micromobility in Qatar, but also put best practices for e-scooter safety in place before we have to respond to more deaths or serious injuries caused by unsafe e-scooter use “ said Dr. Rafael Consunji, Director of HIPP.The Hamad Trauma Center has already treated victims with severe e-scooter injuries, and there have been reports of many minor to moderate injuries requiring treatment at Qatar’s various emergency rooms. The Hamad Injury Prevention Program does not want e-scooters to be the cause of more serious injuries or deaths in Qatar, particularly during Ramadan, when children and other users will ride them mostly at night, so they are sharing best practices for the use and regulation of e-scooters.Children under the age of 12 should not be permitted to ride e-scooters. Before taking to the road, new users should practice on a smooth surface in an area specifically designated for e-scooters. An e-scooter can/should only be used by one person. Before using the e-scooter for the first time, carefully inspect and test it to better understand the specifications, features, and capabilities of the machine. Every rider on an e-scooter must wear a helmet.The HIPP’s recommendation to prevent e-scooter injuries includes e-scooters should be banned from roads with speed limits greater than 50 kph. Significantly more vulnerable road users, like e-scooter users, cyclists and pedestrians, are killed in crashes with vehicles travelling more than 50 kph; Speed limits for e-scooters, ranging from 10-20 kph, must be introduced and enforced in in order to reduce the number of crashes, depending on the environment and road user mix. E-scooter speeding has been identified as a cause of almost 40% of crashes; speed limits will reduce the number of crashes that happen; E-scooter drivers must not use their mobile phones for calls or texting, as this behavior has been associated with e-scooter fatalities from crashes; and E-scooters should only drive on the roads or designated lanes, behaving like a bicycle, not on the sidewalks or crosswalks.The leading causes of e-scooter accidents were speed, losing control of the scooter, and colliding with a pothole or a stationary object such as a pole. Speed limits, restrictions on distracted or impaired driving, and designated e-scooter lanes can help to address these issues.In the United States, there was a 222 percent increase in e-scooter injuries reported between 2014 and 2018, following the introduction of ride-sharing e-scooter options. It is estimated that over 50,000 e-scooter injuries occurred in the United States last year.Globally, e-scooter users are more likely to be injured than cyclists. Half of all e-scooter injuries occur during the user’s first ride. Before leaving the area for the first time or operating a new or unfamiliar machine, perform a quick test run in a nearby safe environment. On every ride, all e-scooter riders must also wear protective eyewear goggles, closed shoes, elbow/knee pads, and gloves. On every ride, e-scooter riders must turn on their lights and wear high-visibility or reflective clothing, regardless of whether it is day or night.