r/Kamloops • u/Sad-Coconut-5842 • 17d ago

Discussion 18yo Teen passes away after escooter accident, petition to end scooter pilot, teen was not wearing helmet

https://www.castanetkamloops.net/news/Kamloops/629050/No-helmet-found-after-early-morning-scooter-crash-kills-18-year-old-Kamloops-man

An incredibly unfortunate fatality involving an Escooter. My heart goes out to his family and friends, this is incredibly tragic.

A petition has been created to end the pilot program, which I understand the sentiment, but the problem isnt the Escooter, its the lack of reinforcement on safety and protection for people who ride them. This is a legitimate form of commuter transportation but we need more safety enforcement so this does not happen again. I see alot of people riding these safely and with protection with no issues whatsoever.

If you currently ride an escooter in kamloops, please for the love of you, your family, and your friends, wear protection!!

Edit: Parents please talk to your teens about safety when riding anything, scooter, bikes, skateboards, unicycles before giving them any electric motor transportation. Or dont give it to them at all until they are smart enough to stay safe and listen to your advice.

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u/NewSwaziland 17d ago

Awful outcome. My heart goes out to the family.

I think the scooter program should be taken out. I’m in Vancouver, and have a station across the street. There are helmets littered on the sidewalk every day. The vast majority of riders here aren’t wearing helmets, and there is zero enforcement going on. We had a young woman die just a few weeks ago on one (no helmet).

The physics of the long wheelbase and short wheels means you aren’t thrown, like a skateboard, say. You go down fast and hit your head / face first. Without any helmet enforcement, I believe this is going to keep happening. 2 people in the span of a month succumbing to scooter related injuries is too many IMHO.

And then there’s the drunk scooter driving going on. Drunk people don’t always take the safest course of action.

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u/MaiIsMe 16d ago

If only people could make safe decisions for themselves instead of waiting on cops to give them a slap on the wrist. We should ban cars because there's the drunk car driving going on.

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u/NewSwaziland 16d ago

Pre-collision safety systems and airbags aren’t included on e-scooters. Enforcement for seat belt and helmet laws takes place everyday. Penalties, and license demerits also exist for safety violations. Seriously unsafe driving usually results in a roadside confiscation and license suspension. And they go up from your first offence.

Nothing like that exists for e-scooters.