1620 5th Avenue
Electric scooters, also called dockless scooters, have spread across California rapidly over the past two years. Chances are, you have seen people on scooters zipping about on streets across the city.
However, the popularity of these scooters has clearly caused problems in San Diego and other cities. Like in other cities, scooter accidents are occurring in San Diego.
City council members recently passed new regulations for dockless scooters and bikes to reduce the problems for scooter and bike users, pedestrians, cyclists, business owners and motorists. The new regulations went into effect on July 1. Here is what you need to know.
Certain Areas Have Special Speed Limits
Council members are concerned about accidents occurring in areas with heavy foot traffic. For this reason, the new regulations have special speed limits for certain geo-fenced areas. These areas include Mission Beach, Balboa Park, Petco Park and Downtown.
Some pedestrian-only areas (no ride zones) have even lower speed limits, at 3 miles per hour, while other areas have an 8 mile per hour speed limit. For most other areas, the speed limit is 15 miles per hour.
Electric scooter and bike users will also receive push notifications if they are entering restricted areas.
Police Officers Do Not Necessarily Enforce the New Regulations
Police officers can reprimand someone using a dockless scooter or bike in an unsafe or illegal fashion. However, the new regulations work on a complaint-based system.
You can submit complaints to local police departments and to the appropriate scooter companies. Riders can face fines for violating the new City Council regulations.
There Are New Parking Restrictions
You cannot park dockless bikes and scooters in certain areas of the city that have heavy foot traffic. This means you cannot end your ride at beaches and boardwalks. You also cannot end rides around Petco Park or near the Embarcadero. The new regulations also bar users from parking scooters and bikes near schools and hospitals.
In addition, the city now has designated corrals for parking electric scooters and bikes. The downtown area will have 330 corrals. Riders cannot park scooters or bikes on sidewalks and must use the designated corrals. In addition, riders cannot group together more than four scooters in each staging area. The new regulations require the staging areas to be 40 feet apart.
Compensation for Dockless Bike and Scooter Injuries
It is difficult, but not impossible, to obtain compensation for dockless scooter and bike injuries. Companies that operate these services have confusing terms of service agreements and varying insurance policies. The agreements also waive your right to sue, but that does not mean you should be scared away from speaking to an attorney.
Lawsuits are being filed across the country, and this is still a new frontier for many personal injury attorneys. We encourage you to call us for a free consultation if you have questions about seeking compensation after an accident. You can reach us by calling (619) 853-5101 or by using the contact form on our website.
1620 5th Avenue