Available without a driving licence to anyone 14 years and over, capable of 20 kilometres per hour, beloved by the inebriated and small enough to invade the pavement, it is easy to see how e-scooters are a recipe for disaster. Now, figures from Destatis have revealed just how dangerous the two-wheelers can be.

E-scooters causing more traffic accidents in Germany

Since 2020 the number of traffic accidents involving e-scooters has increased fivefold in Germany, according to new data published by Destatis.

2020 saw 92 road accidents compared to 282 in 2021 and a jump to 442 in 2022. A mode of transport that can unite drivers, cyclists and pedestrians in their grievances, in 69,7 percent of these traffic accidents, e-scooters drivers were determined to have caused the collision. 

Riding under the influence and using the scooter incorrectly were found to be the most common cause of accidents.

German Police Union calls for e-scooter safety measures

To reckon with the obvious dangers of e-scooting, German Police Union vice-chairman, Michael Mertens, is proposing that higher fines for dangerous riding and an alcohol ban be imposed.

Speaking to RND, Mertens added that the police believe the speed capabilities of scooters should be curtailed. “E-scooters are too fast. [...] A partial success would be to restrict the speed of the scooters to 15 kilometres per hour in principle”. 

Interior Minister in Baden-Württemberg, Thomas Strobl, added to the commentary by emphasising that e-scooters should be taken seriously as motor vehicles and not toys, which inexperienced users often find difficult to safely manoeuvre at 20 kilometres per hour.

Could Berlin follow Parisians' e-scooter ban?

On April 2, 89 percent of Parisians voted to ban e-scooters city-wide. Despite the chorus of critics in Germany, with the federal republic being the second-largest e-scooter market in the world following the US, a similar ban in Berlin seems but a dream.

But the German Association of Cities are daring to dream, at least a little, and already floating the idea that federal states should “give all cities the option of requiring a special use permit for e-scooters in public spaces”, according to Deputy Chief Executive Verena Göppert.

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