(Ljubljana, April 6, 2023) A national preventive action for greater safety of electric scooter drivers took place this week, up until April 9, 2023. Today, the Slovenian Traffic Safety Agency and Zavod VOZIM, the national coordinator of the European Road Safety Charter, carried out an international conference The future of electric scooters in Slovenia.
The rise of this mode of transportation, along with changes in the micro-mobility sector, poses new challenges for policy makers. Electric scooters are becoming more and more popular, but for years data has shown that they are not among the safest modes of transportation. The consequences of traffic accidents they are involved in are getting graver. Last year two electric scooter drives died in an electric scooter traffic accident, both caused the accident, and neither was wearing a safety helmet. The number of minor and serious injuries is also rising rapidly, there was a total of 196 injuries in 2022, double than the year prior. Last year the police detected 727 traffic violations, most of which are connected to driving on the wrong side of the road, and speeding, as well as not using a helmet, disregarding the right of way or red light, use of cell phones and headphones, as well as vehicle issues. 25 traffic accidents involving electric scooter drivers were documented until the beginning of April.
Antonio Avenoso, executive director of the European Transport Safety Council, stressed in his speech: “Electric scooters are more and more widespread in European cities, but sadly we are also facing increasing number electric scooter drivers getting injured. In order to reverse this trend, we must take some sensible measures for the safety of electric scooter drivers, as well as other road users. Electric scooters can play an important role in the sustainable future of cities, but they have to prioritize the safety of more vulnerable road users when they are using modes of transportation that are much less dangerous for other road users than cars, trucks and other motor vehicles. Even though we believe electric scooter drivers should follow speed regulations and always wear a helmet, it is also the responsibility of cities to build safe road infrastructure with a separate network of cycling lanes and set appropriate speed limits, which are crucial for road safety.
Simona Felser, active director of the Slovenian Traffic Safety Agency, stressed in her introduction: “Electric scooters are growing in popularity, but data from the last several years show, that they are not among the safest modes of transportation. The number of traffic accidents involving electric scooters is increasing, and the person responsible is most often the electric scooter driver. Moreover, this share is growing, as electric scooter drivers caused 61 percent of all traffic accidents in 2021, with the percent growing to 66 last year. Since September 2019, when the police started recording the statistics, until the beginning of April this year, that is in three and a half years, there were more than 430 accidents involving electric scooter drivers on Slovenian roads. There were 231 in 2022 alone. Most of the accidents, almost 87%, is recorded in housing areas. The most common cause is speeding, a third of the accidents was of this nature, and other common causes are driving on the wrong side of the road and disregarding the right of way. Most of the responsible parties were between the ages of 18 and 44, but a worrying fact is that seven of the people who caused the accidents were under 14 years old, and 15 were under 17 years old. So, I would like to make an appeal for a consideration of raising the age limit for driving electric scooters. The European Transport Safety Council recently proposed the minimum age for an electric scooter driver to be 16 or to set the limit in accordance with the moped driving age. This is exactly what the Slovenian Traffic Safety Agency proposed years ago, as our national legislation stipulates that an individual can take a driving test for a moped at the age 15. An electric scooter is after all a vehicle, not a toy.”
David Razboršek, director of the Zavod VOZIM, pointed out: “The fact is that new forms of mobility – with electric scooters being one of them – are here. If we want to make these modes of mobility safe and sustainable, it is key that we prioritise them over cars, but not over pedestrians or other users of public surfaces. And not at the expense of safety! Organizations in Slovenia and EU have the opportunity to start a dialogue regarding electric scooters, to look for solutions together, and contribute our share in a wholistic approach ensuring safety for all road users, especially the most vulnerable ones. One of the key pillars of this approach is changing the opinion and behaviour of all layers of society.”
Matjaž Leskovar, Traffic Police Sector, General Police Administration, said: “Electric scooters are becoming increasingly popular as a means of transport in Slovenia. While the rapid increase in the number of electric scooters has brought many benefits for the environment and mobility, their use also has an impact on road safety. The increased use of electric scooters, due to the characteristics of this means of transport and the way they are driven, also means a higher risk of road accidents and personal injuries. This brings with it important challenges in terms of appropriate legislation, infrastructure and user education. The Road Traffic Regulation Act treats them as light motor vehicles and also sets the conditions for driving them, which is of course not enough. Police officers found 79 infringements by electric scooter drivers in 2020, 247 in 2021 and 727 in 2022. The most common offences are driving on the wrong side of the road and in the wrong direction, speeding, drunk driving, not wearing a helmet and vehicle defects. Both the number of accidents and the number of infringements detected are on the rise. In 2022, two electric scooter drivers died. This year, however, 25 electric scooter drivers have already been involved in accidents, which is worrying as the period of milder weather is just beginning. The challenge for all of us involved in road safety is how to make electric scooter drivers safer. Working together with the relevant stakeholders, we will surely find the right answers."
Anamaria Hren, traffic engineer, leader of the Sector for the development and coordination of road traffic safety at Slovenian Traffic Safety Agency, pointed out in her lecture: "Until 2 April of this year, 25 electric scooter drivers were involved in road accidents, the same as last year, and no one died this year, where the first electric scooter driver death in Slovenia occurred this time last year. This year one electric scooter driver was seriously injured, compared to two at this time last year, and 19 had minor injuries this year, compared to 15 last year. Electric scooters are used by many people to travel shorter distances, and this modern mode of transport has also become one of the steps towards green mobility, especially in cities. This is of course welcome, but we always stress the need for correct and responsible driving. In the future, micro-mobility will have to be addressed with the utmost responsibility and with an appropriate traffic policy and adaptation of the legislation so that we can also achieve an increase in road safety in this area."
Elvis A. Herbaj, Celje Police Department, was clear: "Electric scooters are among us, and we should not fool ourselves with thinking that we can get rid of them, even with a ban. We have to accept the fact that such road users are now part of traffic. An important issue is that we have different types of electric scooters on the market and that we need to think carefully about whether the current legislation is appropriate. We will also have to think of a way to ensure that their users are properly trained, how to hold them responsible for road safety and also how to hold them liable for damages in cases where they cause damage to other vehicles and/or to other road users. There is also a lot of work to be done on road infrastructure, which is in a poor state, usually on the very parts of the road used by electric scooter drivers."
Uroš Tominc, MD, traumatologist, University medical centre Ljubljana, spoke about the consequences of electric scooter accidents treated by UKC Ljubljana: "Since the introduction of electric scooters in Slovenia, we have seen an increase in the number of injuries as a consequence of traffic accidents or incidents. We have been especially surprised by the serious injuries, which are more comparable to those caused by moped and motorcycle accidents. These included life-threatening injuries as well as fatal injuries. The main problem lies in the lack of awareness among drivers of the speed developed by electric scooters, many of whom still perceive electric scooters as ordinary kick scooters. The speed of a foot-powered scooter is around 10 km/h and that of an electric scooter is at least 20 km/h, so there is already a significant difference when stopping and dismounting from a halting electric scooter vs. a kick scooter. Every doubling of speed means four times the energy the body absorbs in the event of a fall or collision. As electric scooters have become part of everyday traffic, there is a need for appropriate legislation to safely include electric scooters in traffic and, above all, to promote their safe use."
Ivan Begović, Bolt's Micro-mobility Director for Slovenia and Croatia, said: "The safety of electric scooter users and all road users has been a priority for Bolt since the launch of our micro-mobility services. We feel obliged to keep setting ever-higher standards in the industry. As the largest micro-mobility operator in Europe, we take this responsibility seriously and hope to be able to continue this work in Slovenia thanks to the everything we are doing in developing and improving our services and our cooperation with NGOs and city administrations."
The conference also focused on the EUROPEAN ROAD SAFETY CHARTER, presented by Sophie Vanhove, the Project Officer at the Vias Institute, who is involved in the international and Belgian coordination of the Charter: "The European Road Safety Charter is the largest online platform on road safety developed by the European Commission. With more than 3,500 members, it aims to exchange knowledge and experience between different types of stakeholders across Europe to work together towards Vision Zero."
Anže Albreht, Director of the Reševalni pas Institute, winner of the ERSC award in the Safe System Approach category, said: "Reševalni pas Institute’s volunteers are proof that every group or individual citizen can contribute to improving road safety and culture. From 2013 to today, we have made great progress by raising awareness and highlighting the importance of the rescue lane in the event of congestion on motorways. Intervention services are less and less often confronted with difficulties in breaking through congestion. The European Road Safety Charter award in 2022 confirms that we have achieved a lot, but it also gives us an even greater responsibility to work even harder in the future."
The plenary session was followed by a moderated panel with Antonio Avenoso, Sophie Vanhove, Simona Felser, David Razboršek, Andreja Knez, Acting Director General of the Directorate for Roads and Road Transport of the Ministry of Infrastructure, Uroš Tominc and Matjaž Leskovar. The speakers highlighted some important starting points and guidelines for the future regulation of electric scooters in Slovenia. Knez pointed out that safety should be the first priority, and that every user of an electric scooter should take care of their own safety, as well as the safety of other road users. "There are three key challenges in ensuring safety in a systemic way: spatial planning of infrastructure that protects vulnerable users and does not expose them, vehicles that must be properly designed and safe, and empowerment of electric scooter users, which should start in the school curriculum and continue with users in the working population."
Photo: Boštjan Podlogar/STA
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