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There isn’t half enough of that going on.

The proliferation of electric scooters on the footpaths and roads is the greatest menace to pedestrians, cyclists and motorists alike, as they weave their way in and out of traffic on roads, cycle lanes and paths to their little hearts’ content.

Never mind the danger to others – they are a mortal danger to themselves.

Because they are riding along at a fair pelt on a device that’s little more than two sticks welded together at a right angle and equipped with an engine and wheels.

They may not be going at the speed of a motorbike or a car, but the level of exposure to potential accident is so much greater – and so is the potential damage if you fall.

A wiser person once said that the most important characteristic of a car was not how fast it goes – but how quickly it stops.

That’s why the speed limit is a fraction of its top speed, because it’s the ability to control the vehicle that counts, not how far you can push the pedal to the floor.

On top of that, at least in a car, you are wearing a seat belt and there is a considerable body of metal that would hopefully offer some protection if you were in an accident.

Cyclists wear helmets and most of them are rigorous in their adherence to the rules of the road. That may be because they’ve come up against too many drivers who don’t observe the proscribed gap between car and bike, and they’ve suffered the consequences.

So a good helmet is a prerequisite to give yourself the maximum protection in the case of an incident or accident.

A wiser person once said that the most important characteristic of a car was not how fast it goes – but how quickly it stops.

A wiser person once said that the most important characteristic of a car was not how fast it goes – but how quickly it stops.

That said, some of those owners of electric bikes could do with a lesson or two on road safety because they are one step from motor bikers on the cycle lanes, forcing actual cyclists onto the footpath to avoid them.

And they’re a menace on the actual road as well – particularly those in a hurry to deliver food to people too lazy to either go out and get it or to cook for themselves – because they weave in and out of traffic as though they owned the roads.

Yet all of these pale by comparison to the danger caused by e-scooters which come equipped with all the protection of a wet paper bag.

E-scooters will have been legal here on public roads for two years in May – but those using them should be over sixteen; they are supposed to stick to 20 km/h and follow road rules like cyclists.

Hitting a speed of 20km/h might not seem that fast – and it clearly isn’t compared to a car – but I’d argue that it’s way too fast when you can be completely exposed.

Be that as it may, greater minds than mine have decided that this is an appropriate speed for these devices to travel at – although, as someone famously said about credit cards, you can always see that as a limit as opposed to a target.

The law also says that e-scooter users cannot use footpaths – except they do. They must have lights, brakes, and a bell – except many of them don’t.

Inexplicably you don’t need a licence to drive one, although you do for a moped which is an infinitely safer mode of transport.

You can see why e-scooters would be a popular mode of transport, particularly in urban areas – they are light, mobile and fold away under your desk.

But that lightness and flexibility are also their biggest shortcomings because it stands to reason that, if you hit a pothole and come off this glorified skateboard, you have absolutely nothing between yourself and a head trauma.

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The death of Grace Lynch, the teenager from Finglas hit by a scrambler – a bike that wasn’t made for roads and should never be on them – has led to a concerted crackdown on illegally fast e-scooters, scramblers and other electric and motorised bikes.

And that, according to figures compiled recently by the Irish Independent, has seen the number of e-scooters in Dublin alone confiscated so far this year topping 150. That, in two months, is more than the total for all of 2025.

But the same paper last year also revealed that many e-scooters, being heavily marketed to commuters by Irish sellers – both in shops and online – were capable of travelling at up to 65kmh, with one particular model travelling up to 100kmh.

So if you believe that 20km/h is too fast, imagine what your chances of survival are if you’re going three – or five – times that legal limit.

The rate of e-scooter injuries among children has soared, with Temple Street Children’s Hospital revealing that, over the last five years, there has been a fourfold increase in the numbers presenting with such injuries.

Now that might have to be tempered by the fact that there wasn’t the same proliferation of e-scooters on our roads and paths in 2021, but it still shows that this is a growing problem with massive consequences.

The growth of cycle paths in Galway has been a marvel, finally offering a degree of safety for those who pedal to work or college or wherever they want to go. But the growth of e-scooters is a step in the other direction.

It may seem like a real ‘old man’ thing to advocate – but I’d ban the whole lot of them.

The mobility they offer is far outweighed by the danger they cause. And even if most owners do behave responsibly, the absence of safety measures means there is an inherent level of risk that is just not acceptable, whatever the benefits.

© Connacht Tribune