Transportation advocates split over e-scooter trials in B.C.

Three years into aCity of Vancouver trial testing the use of electric kick scooters, transportation advocates are split on how they're regulated.

Vic Leach, a member of the pedestrian advocacy group Walker's Caucus, told On the Coast he's concerned how e-scooters are affecting pedestrian safety.

"They're on the sidewalks, they're going into intersections,"he said. "Older people get a little bit leery of them."

But not everyone's convinced they're a harmful addition to the city. Rose Gardner, director of bike education with HUB Cycling, said she celebrates e-scooters as an alternative to driving, adding they don't burn fuels or produce exhaust fumes.

"They promote active transportation, and they reduce the number of cars on the road," she said. "We're excited to see more ways of getting around the city."

E-scooters are illegal to ride in most parts of the province, except in a select few cities testing out their use, including Vancouver, North Vancouver, Richmond and Kelowna.

In the City of Vancouver, anyone over 16 is allowed to ride electric kick scooters in bike lanes or roads where the speed limit is less than 50 kilometres per hour. It's illegal to ride them on sidewalks, in crosswalks and intersections, and it's illegal for multiple people to ride them or to ride them without a helmet.

It's also illegal to operate them under the influence of drugs or alcohol or while using a phone.

Gardner saidchoosing routes that don't bring scooters near busy intersections or alotof cars can also keep riders safe.

Leach said many e-scooter riders don't wear helmets, don't have bells and move quickly in pedestrian zones, which makes the scooters dangerous for mobility-impaired or visually impaired walkers.

He's calling for police enforcement ofe-scooter rules. He's also asking riders to wear reflective clothing and have headlights and taillights.

Dr. Michael Schwandt, a medical health officer with Vancouver Coastal Health, told CBC'sOn The Coast that as e-scooters become popular, they will present a risk.

But he said education about safe use and separated lanes for vehicles travelling at the same speed as the e-scooters could mitigate that risk.

"One of the key things we can do is separate modes of transportation between people moving at different speeds," Schwandt said. "Our transportation infrastructure and policies can go a long way."

Gardner added the use of e-scooters could encourage more cycling-friendly infrastructure.

"We'd love to see them allowed in cycle lanes and grow so that people can have more ways to safely move around their communities that are climate-friendly and healthy."