Readers React: Scooters won’t take drivers out of their cars. They’re also dangerous
To the editor: I don’t disagree that if motorized scooter use was properly regulated and if somehow “the popularity of scooters could help increase the number of people advocating for protected lanes and smarter road design,” there might be some benefit. But those things are not going to happen.
The scooters might make travel more convenient for young (and according to recent studies, male) pedestrians or users of the transit system, or perhaps it will make their last mile more fun. But they won’t take drivers out of cars, and they will endanger elderly, disabled or young users of the transportation system who don’t have choices about how to travel.
And, without docks, and with very vague parking regulations, the scooters will litter the sidewalks and curbs, further disadvantaging already challenged travelers.
Amelia Regan, Newport Beach
The writer is a professor of computer science and transportation systems engineering at UC Irvine.
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