Dockless scooters: fun, convenient and unregulated

It's almost as if one night, a spaceship descended upon us and dropped thousands of dockless motorized scooters on the streets of California's most popular cities. We woke up to a new world of convenient, fun and affordable transportation. And yet, few people seem to understand the laws that regulate them.

What Laws Apply?

A "motorized scooter" is defined as "any two-wheeled device that has handlebars, has a floorboard that is designed to be stood upon when riding, and is powered by an electric motor," according to California Vehicle Code Section 407.5(a). They also include those powered by means other than electricity, including human propulsion.

These motorized scooters are exempted from some requirements the Vehicle Code places on motorcycles and automobiles: No registration, insurance or license plate is required. However, motorized scooter riders must follow certain legal requirements. For example, riders must have a valid driver's license, they cannot ride with passengers, and they cannot ride on a road or highway with a speed limit higher than 25 mph unless it has a bicycle lane.

In addition, riders must wear a proper bicycle helmet, according to Vehicle Code Section 21235(c). Have you seen anyone wearing a helmet while zipping around town on a dockless scooter? I sure haven't. Apparently, in an effort to comply with the helmet law, scooter-share app companies like Bird tell users, "Active riders can request a free helmet from the safety section of the mobile app." Although Bird has given inventive 12-year-olds a way to score a free helmet or two (see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgwyMwQa3Ss), it's unclear how many actual riders make use of this feature.

As for where these scooters can and cannot go, scooter riders are legally required to stay off the sidewalk. This is a tough requirement for riders, when they are faced with riding in the street with traffic going well over the Vehicle Code's 15 mph limit for motorized scooters. For this reason, scooter riders are encouraged to ride in bicycle lanes.

Also, riders cannot "leave a motorized scooter lying on its side on any sidewalk, or park a motorized scooter on a sidewalk in any other position, so that there is not an adequate path for pedestrian traffic," according to Vehicle Code Section 21235(i). Nevertheless, for the residents of California's major cities, these scooters have become a bit of a nuisance and a safety hazard for both riders and those around them. The scooters are dockless, meaning that they can simply be dropped anywhere after the rider is finished. Sadly, they are left all over the place, including left blocking sidewalks and entrances, which poses hazards to pedestrians and people with disabilities.

So, although laws do exist to regulate this new scooter-share world we are in, they are largely being ignored by users. In touristy areas of California, like Fisherman's Wharf or Venice Beach, we see visitors scooting around at full speed with no helmets, wearing flip-flops, doubling up riders, putting kids on them and even riding in the wrong direction in bike lanes. It's insanity on wheels!

On the surface, scooter shares seem like a convenient and fun idea. However, when you are on public roadways, you have to balance convenience with safety.

Cities Are Cracking Down

At the end of the day, the main issue is that dockless scooters increase the likelihood of serious accidents. San Francisco, Los Angeles and other major California cities already have significant problems with pedestrian and bicycle traffic. Adding motorized scooters -- with operators who have limited experience and no idea what laws to follow -- to this mix could create a significant increase in the number of potential traffic accidents. Therefore, cities are cracking down on these companies in an effort to minimize the risk.

San Francisco has considered setting a cap of 500 scooters that each company is allowed to have on city streets. Rather than limit the number of scooters, Santa Monica established an emergency ordinance allowing law enforcement to impound any motorized scooter that poses an immediate hazard or obstructs access to public rights-of-way.

These regulations appear to be more focused on the nuisance aspect of these scooters, rather than the safety issues. When it comes to revolutionary technology and innovation, the law is always one step behind. This was the case with ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft and cryptocurrencies -- now we can add dockless scooters to the list. Only time will tell whether these scooter companies will have to face the music, like the rideshare companies did, and take some responsibility for the damage done by and to their users.