how to avoid the too many accidents of electric scooters?

The scooters thread their way through the middle of the cars and slalom between the pedestrians. They sometimes parade at full speed on the sidewalks, without worrying about traffic signs. Adopted by two million French people, they are hated by many residents. “They come at full speed, and they don’t respect you”, says a woman. In 2021, 1,360 accidents involved electric scooters, and 26 were fatal. A 5-year-old Ukrainian boy was killed while crossing a pedestrian crossing with his mother on Wednesday June 28 in Nice (Alpes-Maritimes), knocked down by an electric scooter driver.

Since 2019, however, it is forbidden to ride a scooter with passengers, on the sidewalk, without insurance and to exceed 25 km/h. Some cities want to go further. In Bordeaux (Gironde), it will soon no longer be possible to exceed 5 km/h in certain streets. A similar system is already in place in Paris, where it is forbidden to exceed 10 km/h in certain busy areas. However, some users do not hesitate to unleash their vehicle to increase its speed. The practice is simple, but can be expensive: 1,500 euros fine, and the loss of all insurance coverage in the event of an accident.