E-Bikes, Scooters Around Fort Collins: How Many Wrecks Have You Seen?
E-scooter and E-bike companies tout providing safe and orderly mobility around campuses. After seeing more than a few riders hit the pavement, are they worth it?
After a recent Colorado State football game at Canvas Stadium, our boss watched as a fan left the game on his e-scooter, and left a state of consciousness soon after.
According to our boss:
The guy ran straight into the curb of the sidewalk across the street, projecting himself off the e-bike into the air. He went right into a sign on the sidewalk, and fell like a bag of cement onto the sidewalk. If only he'd been a foot to the right, he would have made it to the lawn.
It was bad; a lot of blood. It looked like part of his brain was on the sidewalk.
SPIN has been in Fort Collins since July of 2021, replacing the Bird which was around for a while after Pace went out of business. According to the Coloradoan, SPIN has about 900 e-scooters and 200 e-bikes around CSU and the city.
The e-bikes and e-scooters cost 30 cents per minute to ride, after paying $1 to unlock them. Clearly, there are rules to riding then around Colorado State University, including:
- E-Bikes and E-Scooters are not to be ridden dangerously or recklessly
The man in the scenario that our boss witnessed, appeared to be drunk; which only contributed to his problematic situation. No helmet, inebriated; put the two together, and your odds of needing medical attention increase.
Many people around The Choice City have seen the Spin bikes and scooters discarded haphazardly, though they are supposed to be left upright at a bike rack or at least upright at the curb of a sidewalk.
Fort Collins is a college town and college students need affordable ways to traverse the city, but are these alternative options going to be worth the convienence?