Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, Arlington, Virginia.
Department of Emergency Medicine, George Washington University Medical Center, Washington, DC.
Traffic Inj Prev. 2021;22(5):401-406. doi: 10.1080/15389588.2021.1913280. Epub 2021 May 7.
E-scooter use has grown rapidly in the United States. Its rise in popularity has coincided with the promotion of cycling in many cities, but more needs to be known about how these transportation modes compare to determine if cycling should serve as an appropriate benchmark for policy decisions and safety expectations regarding e-scooters.
We examined characteristics of adults seeking treatment in a Washington, DC, emergency department (ED) for injuries associated with riding e-scooters during 2019 ( = 99) or bicycles during 2015-2017 ( = 337).
E-scooter incidents less frequently involved moving vehicles (13.1% vs. 37.7%) or occurred on roads (24.5% vs. 50.7%) than cycling incidents. A smaller proportion of injured e-scooter riders were ages 30-49 (32.3% vs. 48.4%) and a larger proportion were 50 and older (34.3% vs. 22.6%) or female (45.5% vs. 29.1%). Distal lower extremity injuries were more common among e-scooter riders (13.1% vs. 3.0%; RR, 2.76; 95% CI, 1.79-3.54), and injuries to the proximal upper extremity (9.1% vs. 20.5%; RR, 0.49; 95% CI, 0.24-0.92) or chest, abdomen, and spine (3.0% vs. 14.0%; RR, 0.24; 95% CI, 0.07-0.70) were less common. Head injury rates were similar, but e-scooter riders more often experienced concussion with loss of consciousness (4.0% vs. 0.6%; RR, 3.03; 95% CI, 1.20-4.09) and were far less likely to wear helmets (2.0% vs. 66.4%). Estimated ED presentation rates per million miles traveled citywide were higher among e-scooter riders than cyclists (RR, 3.76; 95% CI, 3.08-4.59).
E-scooters and bicycles are both popular forms of micromobility, but the characteristics of riders injured on them, the ways in which they become injured, and the types of injuries they sustain differ substantially. E-scooter rider injury rates, though currently high, may decrease as they gain experience; however, if the number of new users continues to climb, they will persist in using the ED more often than cyclists per mile that they travel.
在美国，电动滑板车的使用迅速增加。随着许多城市推广自行车出行，电动滑板车的普及程度也有所提高，但我们需要更多地了解这些交通方式之间的差异，以确定自行车是否应该作为制定政策和对电动滑板车的安全预期的适当基准。
我们研究了 2019 年在华盛顿特区急诊部（ED）因骑电动滑板车受伤（ = 99）或 2015-2017 年因骑自行车受伤（ = 337）的成年人的特征。
与骑自行车相比，电动滑板车事故中涉及移动车辆（13.1%对 37.7%）或发生在道路上（24.5%对 50.7%）的情况较少。受伤的电动滑板车骑手年龄在 30-49 岁的比例较小（32.3%对 48.4%），年龄在 50 岁及以上的比例较大（34.3%对 22.6%）或女性（45.5%对 29.1%）。电动滑板车骑手更常见下肢远端受伤（13.1%对 3.0%；RR，2.76；95%CI，1.79-3.54），而近端上肢受伤（9.1%对 20.5%；RR，0.49；95%CI，0.24-0.92）或胸部、腹部和脊柱受伤（3.0%对 14.0%；RR，0.24；95%CI，0.07-0.70）的情况较少。头部受伤的发生率相似，但电动滑板车骑手更常出现意识丧失的脑震荡（4.0%对 0.6%；RR，3.03；95%CI，1.20-4.09），且佩戴头盔的比例远低于骑自行车者（2.0%对 66.4%）。电动滑板车在全市每行驶百万英里的急诊就诊率高于骑自行车者（RR，3.76；95%CI，3.08-4.59）。
电动滑板车和自行车都是流行的微移动方式，但骑它们受伤的骑手特征、受伤方式和受伤类型有很大不同。尽管电动滑板车骑手的受伤率目前较高，但随着他们经验的增加，受伤率可能会下降；然而，如果新用户数量继续攀升，他们每行驶一英里使用急诊部的频率将持续高于骑自行车者。
