E-Scooter Injuries Often Involve Riders Being Under the Influence of Substances: Study

Hospitalizations due to scooter-related injuries increased more than eightfold from 2016 through 2021, research shows.

A new report suggests that a quarter of people hospitalized for scooter-related injuries were under the influence of substances, including alcohol, opioids, marijuana and cocaine.

According to findings published in The American Surgeon last month, 7,350 patients who were admitted to hospitals for scooter injuries between 2016 and 2021 tested positive for the presence of some mood-altering substance at the time of their injury.

Electric scooters, commonly referred to as e-scooters, are lightweight two-wheeled vehicles powered by electric motors. They have become increasingly popular in cities across the U.S. over the past decade, offering a convenient and affordable option for short-distance travel, especially in densely populated urban areas. This widespread adoption has been fueled by the rise of app-based rental services and growing demand for environmentally friendly transportation.

However, this rise in popularity coincides with a simultaneous rise in scooter injuries. Despite prior studies showing a 127% increase in hospitalizations caused by e-bikes, hoverboards and e-scooters between 2017 and 2021, the role of substance use in these incidents remains largely unexplored.

For the new study, researchers from the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles, looked at National Inpatient Sample data from 2016 to 2021 to see how many patients tested positive for alcohol, opioids, marijuana and cocaine among those hospitalized for scooter injuries during that period.

The team, led by Hannah Benharash, found that 24.8% of patients tested positive for substance use, which was associated with an increase in hospital costs of approximately $4,600 per patient.

Over the study’s five-year period, hospitalizations for scooter related injuries rose more than eightfold, from 330 to 2,705 cases. Additionally, the risk of traumatic brain injuries among substance-impaired patients was nearly double that of non-impaired individuals.

The study’s findings emphasize the need for strategies to mitigate injury risks, such as helmet mandates, substance use prevention programs, and improvements to scooter infrastructure. These measures could help promote safer, more sustainable use of e-scooters, the authors concluded.

E-Scooter Risks

Hospital visits and traumatic brain injuries are not the only dangers related to the rise in electric scooter use.

In 2022, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) warned e-scooter manufacturers to ensure their batteries meet federal safety standards, following more than 200 reports of battery fires or overheating incidents, including five deaths linked to e-scooters that year.

More recently, around 22,000 Segway e-scooters were recalled after more than 65 reports of handlebar folding mechanisms collapsing, resulting in at least 20 injuries.

As a result of these issues and others, the Transportation Research Board has advocated for enhanced regulation, infrastructure improvements and increased educational efforts to boost e-scooter safety.