San Francisco is grappling with a significant surge in e-scooter-related injury crashes, a troubling trend that has escalated dramatically since the devices first appeared in 2017.
Data shows that incidents have skyrocketed from zero a decade ago to a staggering 227 reported crashes in 2024.
The SF Municipal Transportation Agency indicates that these ‘standup powered devices’ now account for 6 percent of all injury crashes on the city’s streets.
While statistics reveal the dangers, individual stories paint a more personal picture.
In July, the city mourned the loss of a 77-year-old pedestrian who was fatally struck while crossing Market Street.
Similarly, a 55-year-old Dutch tourist lost his life in 2022 after being hit by an e-scooter rider, also on Market Street.
In response to the escalating crisis, local and state authorities have made attempts to address the situation.
California law has implemented restrictions, capping scooter speeds at 15 mph, prohibiting their use on sidewalks, and requiring riders to possess a valid driver’s license.
Companies like Lime and Spin, which rent e-scooters in San Francisco, possess the capacity to manage device speeds and perform license checks during the signup process.
Their devices are also equipped with sidewalk-detection technology.
However, the rise of private e-scooters complicates matters, as these uncontrolled scooters often open the door to more incidents.
As the city navigates these challenges, other urban centers have opted for more severe measures.
In New York City, officials are set to impose a 15-mph speed limit as part of their strategy to enhance safety.
Conversely, Paris has opted for a complete ban on rental scooters, a decision stemming from widespread public sentiment.
San Francisco, for its part, is focusing on encouraging e-scooters to share designated bike lanes while minimizing their presence in vehicle traffic.
When e-scooters first appeared in 2017, their introduction was marked by chaos.
Scooter companies deployed devices across the city without permits, prompting the SF Municipal Transportation Agency to step in and establish structured permits and pilot programs.
Fast forward eight years, and e-scooters, along with e-bikes, have become an everyday sight.
Private ownership has surged, contributing to a nationwide trend where e-scooter injuries rose by 45 percent annually from 2017 to 2022, as reported by UCSF researchers.
In San Francisco, ridership rates climbed 55 percent between 2020 and 2024, leading to a corresponding increase in collisions as outlined in a report by the SFMTA.
These incidents include both solo crashes and those involving other individuals.
Rutgers University researcher Hannah Younes notes that a contributing factor to the rising crash rates is the influx of inexperienced riders.
She observes, “When new users gain more experience, the collisions go down.” After all, many new riders are first-time users of these devices, which raises safety concerns.
Other cities, however, have shown a sense of urgency regarding e-scooter injuries.
In 2023, Paris voted to prohibit rental scooters entirely after a substantial 89 percent of voters indicated their support—though turnout was less than 8 percent.
In contrast, Washington, DC took a proactive approach and invested in dedicated bike lanes, resulting in increased scooter use and a reported 39 percent decrease in crashes in the area.
Calvin Thigpen, a former policy research leader at Lime, emphasized that creating more bike lanes corresponds with a decline in injuries: “If you build more bike lanes, injury rates decline.”
Meanwhile, in New York City, the recent decision to enforce a 15 mph speed limit on e-bikes and e-scooters is generating conversation about how best to integrate these modes of transport into urban traffic management.
However, the lack of built-in speedometers, license plates, or registration for e-scooters and e-bikes complicates enforcement efforts, leading to skepticism about the effectiveness of passive enforcement methods like speed safety cameras.
As e-bikes continue to evolve with heightened power, California has instituted new regulations to address safety, including banning modifications that increase speed on e-bikes and prohibiting sales of Class 3 bikes to anyone under 16.
Police will also have the authority to confiscate ‘moped-style’ bikes exceeding the 28 mph limit set for legal e-bikes.
While addressing the surge in e-scooter injuries is critical, some experts argue that we must not lose sight of the bigger picture—speeding vehicles pose a greater threat on the road.
Dillon Fitch-Polse, co-director of the BicyclingPlus Research Collaborative at UC Davis, stressed, “Speeding cars are far more dangerous, and we should be doing everything we can to reduce car speeds.”
Analysis from the SFMTA reveals that speeding was the primary cause of collisions leading to injuries and fatalities from 2020 to 2024.
Of the 13,744 individuals injured, a significant 47 percent were vehicle drivers and passengers, while 22 percent were pedestrians.
From this data set of 164 fatalities, over half were pedestrians.
In response, the city has embarked on extensive street redesigns and minor enhancements, including corner bulb-outs and bike lanes clearly marked with plastic posts and paint.
Despite these efforts, injury rates have stubbornly remained around 3,000 annually since the mid-2000s, save for a brief decline at the onset of the pandemic.
Currently, San Francisco is leaning toward technology as a solution, having recently deployed speed cameras at 33 locations across the city.
Early reports indicate promising results, showing a remarkable 72 percent reduction in speeding at 15 test sites during September.
Nonetheless, even with the reduction of vehicle speeds, a compelling challenge persists: maintaining proper lane usage—especially among inexperienced riders.
Thigpen’s previous research for Lime highlighted an important shift in transportation habits: 40 to 50 percent of scooter and e-bike trips replace walking.
This shift means that many new riders are still unfamiliar with safe routes and guidelines, as noted by Christopher White, executive director of the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition.
He remarked, “Riders may not know they belong in the bike lane, and some cyclists don’t know that scooters belong in the bike lanes.”
One of the primary objectives for San Francisco is to create safer shared lanes, akin to those successfully implemented in Washington, DC.
Roccaforte, a spokesperson for SFMTA, explained that their commitment centers on ensuring safety for all road users, which necessitates infrastructure upgrades like bicycle facilities, and enhanced signage indicating yield and speed limit regulations.
Despite the increase in e-scooter incidents, the SFMTA reports a 25 percent reduction in bike injury crashes since 2019.
Yet, developing bike lanes remains a contentious and sluggish process in San Francisco, even with funding available for projects.
SFMTA’s financial uncertainties have further delayed other essential safety measures, causing complications such as the absence of speed bumps in residential neighborhoods.
Future budget cuts are looming; the agency’s CFO has urged divisions to plan for cuts ranging from 5 to 7 percent, while they await a rescue loan from the state and rely on potential voter support for tax increases in 2026.
The Bicycle Coalition’s White highlighted how these budget restrictions have impacted educational efforts aimed at teaching new e-scooter riders how to navigate the streets safely.
Adding to the complexity is the distinction between shared and privately owned e-scooters.
Lime and Spin are mandated to implement technology that enforces compliance with the law, but such controls do not apply to privately-owned devices, leading to significant safety concerns.
Requests for comment on enforcement protocols from the SFPD went unanswered, and Roccaforte acknowledged that oversight of private devices falls outside SFMTA’s scope, resting at the state or federal level.
White shared his personal experience of witnessing the risks firsthand.
While biking on Market Street during last year’s election night, he observed a rider on a private e-scooter crash into a Bay Wheels bike rack, resulting in significant damage to the bike rack and a leg injury for the rider.
White called an ambulance for assistance, emphasizing that the presence of non-street-legal devices contributes to an environment where public safety is diminished.
image source from：thefrisc
