Brendon Donohue is blind and remembers the helplessness he felt after tripping over an e-scooter left on a footpath earlier this year.
"It was a really humiliating experience, because there were quite a number of cars that stopped, but no-one really bothered to help me," he said.
"I was a bit scratched up on the elbows and hands. It's made me even more concerned when I'm travelling outside."
The incident was not the first for the 28-year-old since the explosion in numbers of the portable devices in recent years.
"I just don't want to go outside — it really just makes me feel fearful and afraid," Mr Donohue said.
"I'm always thinking, when am I going to hit another scooter, when's the next one going to pop out of the air?
E-scooter rules need overhaul
Disability advocates in Brisbane are calling on local and state authorities to overhaul e-scooter rules to provide more protection for pedestrians.
The latest data collected by Metro North's Jamieson Trauma Institute shows there were 732 emergency presentations associated with e-scooters at Brisbane's three major hospitals between November 2018 and May 2020.
There is no specific data for accidents involving people with a disability.
The institute predicts the actual number of accidents is likely to be higher, because many people, while still injured, do not require hospital attention.
Paige Armstrong, from Queenslanders with Disability Network, said speed limits of 10 kilometres per hour are needed, along with dedicated docking stations for scooter parking.
"People need to be able to get out and about on the streets safely," she said.
Brisbane City Council has already developed 16 e-mobility parking hubs, but they are not mandatory for e-scooter users.
The council said there were 2,350 hire e-scooters operating across the city, but estimated an additional 20,000-plus privately-owned e-scooters were also in use.
'It's been very frightening'
Wheelchair user Elisha Matthews said she was continually being forced on to busy roads when e-scooters were left blocking footpaths.
"I'm in a wheelchair, and there's no way to get around that," she said.
"It can be really dangerous and it's another challenge that I have to face every day."
Ms Matthews said she has copped verbal abuse from e-scooter users trying to get around her.
"They yell at me to get out of the way. It's been very frightening," she said.
The state government is reviewing legislation covering e-scooters.
In a statement, Brisbane hire e-scooter companies Beam and Neuron said safety was their top priority and they were working to further improve education, safety and parking rules for users.
