A law for the use of e-scooters in Ireland is set to be introduced in the coming months.
New research carried out by Connolly Hospital, has shown that more than half of the people hospitalised with injuries while using e-scooters were not wearing helmets.
The majority of patients were aged in their 30s and 40s and were using their e-scooter to commute to and from work.
Twenty-two patients were treated at Connolly Hospital for e-scooter-related injuries between October 2019 and November 2020.
Of this, 73% of patients were male and just over half didn't have a driver's licence, while 60% of patients were not wearing a helmet at the time of their accident.
Doctors at Connolly Hospital believe people's attitude towards e-scooters is that they are seen as a 'children's recreational device' and not to be taken seriously like cycling, where helmets are almost universally worn.
So, what can the government do to stop or lessen this injury surge?
Legislation for e-scooters is the key to making them safer.
Minister for Transport, Eamon Ryan, has started the drafting of legislation in the Road Traffic Bill that will finally give a legal position for e-scooters and e-bikes.
A new vehicle category known as 'Powered Personal Transporters' or PPTs, is to be introduced. Tax, insurance and driving licences will not be required by users.
Under the current law, it's illegal to use e-scooters on Irish roads, with the road traffic bill finally set to legalise e-scooters use on Irish roads.
A new safety standard on e-scooters will be introduced.
Some of those new safety standards may include Inbuilt speed limits on every e-scooter model, which already happens for e-bikes, where the max speed is limited to 25kph.
Several private companies have already expressed an interest in providing a subscription e-scooter service for Dublin, similar to the Dublin Bikes model.
Just last month, Dott, raised over €70 million to begin its rollout of a subscription e-scooter service in Cork, Dublin, Limerick and Galway.
