The University of Utah's Independent Student Voice

The Daily Utah Chronicle

The University of Utah's Independent Student Voice

The Daily Utah Chronicle

The University of Utah's Independent Student Voice

The Daily Utah Chronicle

Write for Us
Want your voice to be heard? Submit a letter to the editor, send us an op-ed pitch or check out our open positions for the chance to be published by the Daily Utah Chronicle.
@TheChrony
Print Issues
Write for Us
Want your voice to be heard? Submit a letter to the editor, send us an op-ed pitch or check out our open positions for the chance to be published by the Daily Utah Chronicle.
@TheChrony
Print Issues

Eco-friendly scooters still pose safety risk

By Steven Warrick

Motor scooters have become extremely popular recently. Scooters have a lot to offer college students, being both economical and handy.

Roy Davis, manager of Vespa Scooters of Salt Lake City said this is because scooters are compact with a low center of gravity and small diameter wheels, which makes them easy to handle. They have internal storage, which also makes them very handy for short hops. Their step-through frames, leg shields and enclosed mechanics also make them neat and convenient to use for people who are dressed up, he said.

Unfortunately, a lot of people don’t understand just how dangerous it can be to ride a scooter. Kevin Smith, sales manager of BMW Triumph Motorcycles of Salt Lake City, said too many people are driving scooters like bicycles. This is not surprising because scooters, unlike motorcycles, tend to be small, quiet and distinctly non-threatening in their appearance. As a result, some people go out on scooters without sufficient training, proper protective gear or an adequate understanding of their absolute vulnerability to four-wheeled traffic.

“It doesn’t matter what you are riding, if you get into a collision, the car is going to win,” Smith said.

Scooter riders should remember when they are on two wheels, their only real defense is accident avoidance and, in this respect, scooters are even more dangerous than motorcycles.

Although it sounds counter intuitive, motorcycles do have an advantage in accident avoidance.

Chris Curnen, a Motorcycle Safety Foundation rider coach for Salt Lake Motorsports, owns both a motorcycle and a scooter. While he likes his scooter, he said it does not have “the brakes or acceleration to get out of trouble” as a motorcycle does. Of course, the extra power can make a motorcycle more dangerous if it is ridden foolishly.

In the same environment, at equal speeds, a scooter is actually more, not less, dangerous than a motorcycle. This isn’t to say that people should not get scooters. They have other advantages such as lower fuel intake. However, if people do get scooters, they should treat them with the same respect and use them with the same caution as they would a bullet bike or a Harley.

[email protected]

Steve Warrick

Leave a Comment

Comments (0)

The Daily Utah Chronicle welcomes comments from our community. However, the Daily Utah Chronicle reserves the right to accept or deny user comments. A comment may be denied or removed if any of its content meets one or more of the following criteria: obscenity, profanity, racism, sexism, or hateful content; threats or encouragement of violent or illegal behavior; excessively long, off-topic or repetitive content; the use of threatening language or personal attacks against Chronicle members; posts violating copyright or trademark law; and advertisement or promotion of products, services, entities or individuals. Users who habitually post comments that must be removed may be blocked from commenting. In the case of duplicate or near-identical comments by the same user, only the first submission will be accepted. This includes comments posted across multiple articles. You can read more about our comment policy at https://dailyutahchronicle.com/comment-faqs/.
All The Daily Utah Chronicle Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *