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A Two Wheeled Risk of Harm in Dallas

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In 2018 at the onset of electric scooters in Dallas, this new transportation option was advertised as a boon for commuters and residents alike with little if no mention of safety concerns.

Fast-forward to today and the trendy vehicles are becoming a safety risk and potential source for personal injuries.  According to city officials, scooter companies have not been disabling them late at night when their use is banned.  That has led to a recent explosion of complaints about groups of people joyriding late at night and menacing downtown business owners and residents alike.  Another problem with the scooter companies’ negligence – joy riders discarding scooters in piles on the pavement.

Since COVID-19 has closed many downtown businesses, city officials said that before the pandemic, scooters were used mostly for commuting but that peak use now is between 8 p.m. and midnight — mostly for entertainment purposes.

It is these safety concerns and the possibility of bodily harm to the joy riders and others alike that the city’s transportation department decided to halt the scooter program temporarily so it can work on tightening the rules.  As of right now, scooter operators must remove the approximately 5,000 vehicles that are currently out on the Dallas streets.

The city’s ordinance, tweaked in March of this year, allows scooters to operate until 9 p.m. in Deep Ellum and until midnight everywhere else.  Other regulations include a 20 mph speed limit.  The council lifted a ban on motorized scooters in June 2018 to encourage alternative transportation.

Police report that criminals sometimes use the scooters after hours as a quick getaway, while large groups of young people are motoring around the city to get better views of illegal street races late at night.

Reports have detailed the misuse of scooters.  They are no longer being used mostly for transportation to the bus station or a bar as intended – but rather have become a form of entertainment.  From a public safety standpoint, they have become a problem.”

Unfortunately, the scooters come with a risk of injury and have also been used in connection with crimes such as purse snatchings.  Personal injuries resulting from the scooters and public safety concerns with their misuse are the main reasons the city council has paused their availability.  A Parkland Memorial Hospital spokeswoman said 68 people were treated in the ER over the past year for scooter injuries.

The city council hopes that their temporary ban gives the city a “second chance” to do a better job of regulating scooters.  Five companies have permits to operate scooters in Dallas: Lime, Wheels, Gotcha, Bird and OjO.  The city told the scooter companies about the late-night violations and they vowed to fix it – however that did not happen.

In some cases, up to 40 scooters have been discarded in streets and on sidewalks.  A similar situation doomed the city’s bike-share program, which preceded the scooters but fizzled out in 2018. At the program’s peak, as many as 20,000 bicycles once rolled through the city.

City officials will meet with the scooter vendors and community leaders and come up with recommendations to make the scooters as safe as possible to all, he said. That includes adding corrals where people can leave the scooters.

Teen Drivers: Their Biggest Cause of Serious Accidents

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An article at cnn.com presents a wake-up call to both parents and teens. There are jokes and comedic sketches about teen drivers, but the reality is far from funny. Getting teen drivers to truly understand and appreciate the danger and responsibility of being behind the wheel is not easy. Statistics mean little to them, so the best way to get their attention is through stories of real incidents. Even then, they may not grasp that they, or their friends, can actually die in a car accident.

100 Deadly Days
The AAA published that over the last five years, accidents for drivers 16-19 increased 16% per day on average for the “100 deadliest days.” These days start with Memorial Day and continue for 100 days through the summer. It makes sense as teens are driving more, not just to and from school or on errands, but for all types of recreation. They aren’t on their usual routes and are thinking about the fun ahead. They’re also likely to have teen passengers along for the fun.

Top Causes of Teen Driving Accidents
The top cause of serious accidents was a surprise. Carrying passengers. That is more dangerous than texting or phone use. Many states, 43 currently, limit a teen driver to one teen passenger, but that’s a law that’s often ignored. The National Safety Council reports carrying passengers increases the probability of a fatal crash by a teen driver 44%. This is huge!

The University of North Carolina’s Highway Safety Research Center conducted a study of 52 North Carolina teen drivers with in-vehicle cameras positioned in their cars or trucks. They were recorded over six months in various driving situations – alone, with parents, and with other teens. Interestingly, when there were passengers they were more likely to limit use of technology, such as phones, radios, even the temperature control. Yet, the biggest reason for serious accidents was the presence of multiple passengers. Loud talking by friends was six times more dangerous than driving alone and horseplay was three times more likely to cause a serious accident.

John Ulczycki, the National Safety Council’s vice president of strategic initiatives, said, “Passengers are a distraction the entire time a teen is driving, whereas the distraction from texting is probably limited to the seconds or minutes they’re looking at screens instead of the road.” Ulczycki also said, “If you have a kid who had their license for less than one year, you have to think very, very carefully about the conditions or the situations in which you allow them to carry any passengers. You really do.”

Auto insurance rates for young drivers reflect the dangers of their inexperience. Parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, adult role models, and people who’ve experienced the tragic effects of teen driving must speak up to the young people in their lives. These admonitions are not a one-time conversation, but should be repeated multiple times over the teen years. Studies show you have more influence than you may think. Never regret the words you didn’t say that could have saved lives.