Lime e-scooter death: Auckland councillor calls for them to be removed from streets
Tuesday, 25 June 2019
A councillor has called for Lime e-scooters to be taken off the streets after a man died.
The 58-year-old man died suddenly in an incident involving a Lime electric scooter on Monday night.
The incident took place on a footpath beside Fanshawe St near Bradnor Lane in Auckland's CBD, shortly before 10pm.
Auckland councillor Christine Fletcher, who previously shared concerns about e-scooters after she was almost knocked over by one, said they should be removed until the outcome of a coroner's investigation into the man's death.
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Fletcher said she had written to Auckland Transport's chief executive Shane Ellison, its board chairman Lester Levy and Auckland Council's chief executive Stephen Town, to raise concerns about e-scooter safety.
The Albert-Eden-Roskill Ward councillor said she wanted as much information as possible about what had happened and asked for more safety requirements to be put in place, such as mandatory helmets for all e-scooter riders.
'I'm not calling for a permanent ban but we have a duty of care and safety,' Fletcher said.
'I asked this morning for the removal of Lime e-scooters until the coroner reports.'
Fletcher said she found it 'ironical' Auckland Transport was out consulting on speed reductions across the city's roads but there was 'a scant regard for the introduction of e-scooters'.
'One death is too many deaths,' she said.
Fletcher said the current safety rules in place for e-scooters were 'insufficient' in protecting people.
Mayor Phil Goff said the death was 'a tragedy and our thoughts are with the victim's family and friends'.
'It is not sensible to speculate on the cause of the accident until the police advise of the circumstances,' Goff said.
'When the police and coroner reports are available, we will know if any other action needs to be taken by local or central government agencies,' Goff said.
On Tuesday, Transport Minister Phil Twyford declined to comment until the circumstances of the incident were clear but said his thoughts were with the man's family.
After Lime e-scooters were introduced to the country in October, Government officials launched a safety review following a spate of accidents.
Last year, Twyford said the review, which is ongoing, would look at what vehicles could use footpaths, and the speed limits of those vehicles.
The arrival of e-scooter ride share services and their roll out had been 'appropriate', he said on Tuesday.
'We are going to regulate to ensure the users of these scooters can share public spaces in a way that's safe and reasonable for everyone.'
A spokeswoman for Christchurch City Council said it did not have information about the circumstances of the fatal incident in Auckland and it would not be implementing new safety measures at this stage.
On June 17, Lime e-scooters were taken off the streets in Hutt Valley as part of a 'seasonal pause'. The company has not offered its services in Upper Hutt since May after 16 e-scooters were damaged.
Lime's public affairs manager Lauren Mentjox said the e-scooters would return in spring or summer but no date has been set for their reintroduction.
Hutt City Council spokeswoman Caryn Ellis said the council was disappointed by the withdrawal.
Dunedin City Council's general manager of community services, Simon Pickford, said it was preparing a trial that would see a voluntary 15hm/h speed limit for scooters, e-scooters and skateboarders in busy pedestrian areas.
The council also has a Memorandum of Understanding with Lime, which includes rules about the location and placement of parked scooters.
In Dunedin, a woman was seriously injured after she collided with a truck while riding a Lime e-scooter. The city's e-scooter riders made headlines for scooting down Baldwin St, including an e-scooter being paired with a La-Z-Boy and two people riding a mattress over two scooters.