Huge rise in e-scooter collisions in Hampshire in just two years

The RAC Foundation said the rise in e-scooter injuries across Great Britain reveals ‘real life’ frequent use of the vehicles is getting ahead of e-scooter trials and legislation.

Department for Transport figures show 94 casualties were recorded by Hampshire Constabulary last year.

It was up from 69 in 2021 and a significant increase from 17 casualties two years prior.

Hampshire follows the overall trend across Great Britain where there is an ever-rising number of e-scooter casualties. Last year there was a total of 1,458 casualties involving e-scooters – up slightly from 1,434 in 2021 and a huge leap from 484 in 2020.

Private e-scooters cannot be legally ridden on roads or pavements in the UK but have become a common sight, particularly in urban areas.

Trials of rental e-scooters on roads in dozens of towns and cities across England are ongoing.

Rental e-scooters have been in Portsmouth and Southampton since March 2021 and on the Isle of Wight since November 2020.

Trials were well received, with over 139,000 registered users riding a total of 1.37million trips in stats released last November. At that time, there were over 800 rental e-scooters available in Portsmouth, 1,400 in Southampton and 118 on the Isle of Wight.

Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, said: ‘As the e-scooter trials rumble on these figures show that the vehicles are in frequent use – and apparently all-too frequent collisions – across the whole country. Real life is very quickly getting ahead of legislation.’

He added: ‘As ministers ponder the future of these devices it is important councils are better funded to keep highway surfaces up to scratch so all road users – not least those on two wheels – don’t fall foul of the rash of potholes which remain far too common.’

The statistics also show there were 12 deaths as a result of e-scooter collisions. Of them, 11 were e-scooter users and one was a pedestrian.

Additionally, the figures reveal e-scooter users made up the majority of those severely or slightly injured with 1,106 hurt (76%), while 233 pedestrians were injured (16%).

The remainder were cyclists, or occupants of other motor vehicles.

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: ‘Safety is at the heart of our e-scooter trials and privately-owned e-scooters remain illegal to use on the road.’

They added the department is committed to protecting all road users and is investing £5 billion from 2020 to 2025 to help local authorities maintain local roads, with an extra £200 million announced in the Budget.

‘This will help them fix millions of potholes a year and resurface roads up and down the country, making journeys smoother and safer for everyone,’ they said.