Comments on: Trash Talking Boise Scooters

By: E B

E B — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 14:17:11 +0000

They have a motor,they have wheels,
they have enough velocity to equal that of some cars, motor scooters, and for sure a bike. Keep them off the sidewalks.As tax payers we pay to construct, and maintain our side walks they are for WALKING NOT Vehicular Traffic.
It is a pedestrian safe zone. Change the law and ticket the violators!

By: Yossarian_22

Yossarian_22 — Wed, 31 Oct 2018 17:03:02 +0000

For $50 to $100 bucks, or maybe even free on Craigslist, you can have a good bike and get real exercise. No batteries to worry about. More payload, more range, trailer capable. And YOU own it.

By: AT

AT — Tue, 30 Oct 2018 06:21:44 +0000

Adapt and accept. These scooters aren’t going anywhere. I rode one last night, tremendous.

By: Yossarian_22

Yossarian_22 — Sun, 28 Oct 2018 15:29:19 +0000

These scooters seem more like a social engineering signal than a serious alternative transportation effort. You can’t pack much payload with you, beyond a backpack. I’ve noticed that these things are parked in 3 or 4s at corners or schools. Does someone go find these things every day and return them to the staging sites? Is that a City paid job? They all have GPS trackers. Will we be finding them in the canal soon? Will we see them in impromptu MX competition for a jolly afternoon of hijinx? Scooter drag racing on your own street? Why not?

By: bikeboy

bikeboy — Sat, 27 Oct 2018 00:47:01 +0000

Clancy, you are certainly correct about the lack of outrage over pedestrian casualties. Apparently we as a society have concluded that we can live with the collateral damage from inattentive driving, walking, etc. (How many of those fatalities can be fully attributed to the motorist? Every day I see pedestrians who are oblivious to their surroundings – almost always totally focused on that “smart phone” and seemingly depending on their Invisible Force Field to keep them from danger.) Of course, as a rule, inattentive pedestrians, cyclists, scooteristas, etc., are only exposing themselves to mortal danger, unlike inattentive motorists who routinely kill and maim innocents in their path of destruction.

Since we have oblivious motorists, cyclists and pedestrians, why not add oblivious E-scooter riders to the mix, huh?

By: Clancy

Clancy — Fri, 26 Oct 2018 22:27:45 +0000

I am generally in favor of the scooters as it means more allies for those getting around on foot or bike. 45% of scooter riders in Portland have never ridden a bike for transportation. I am not in favor of bad behavior, but it is probably comparable to bad behavior with other transportation modes ( car, bike, foot).

Pedestrian deaths are at on all time high according to Idaho Walk Bike Alliance. Where is the outrage for this?

“Pedestrian deaths in Ada County have now hit a 7 year high in 2018 with 6 fatalities with more than two months of the year left. Annual pedestrian deaths in Ada County ranged from two to four from 2012 to 2016.

Oct 24, 58 year old Sam Willie Jr.

Oct. 16, Sandy Jaqueline Hernandez-Nuno

Aug. 25, an 83-year-old woman Glenys. E. Jenson

Aug 6, 23 year old Nickolas G. Cerecerews

July 13, a 66-year-old man

Jan 10, 20 year old Abdulaziz Madallah Ayedh Alenezi.

Aug 13 cyclist 70 year old Joann Baker

By: Eamonn Harter

Eamonn Harter — Fri, 26 Oct 2018 19:12:39 +0000

Both Bird and Lime are funded by venture capital firms attempting to make a quick buck in the current era of financial lunacy. But fear not, this era is ending. Interest rates are continuing their inexorable rise as the Fed withdraws liquidity ($50 billion per month), which will bring back discipline to financial markets. Bird and Lime are definitely not comparable to Henry Ford and Ford Motor Company which took raw iron ore and turned it into finished cars in the same factory. Both have only existed since 2017 as per Wikipedia. As for casualties, you must compare apples to apples: injuries/fatalities per mile travelled.

By: Mark M

Mark M — Fri, 26 Oct 2018 17:08:27 +0000

Nay sayers.
I’m sure when the Ford Model T came along, the comments were very much the same:
“It won’t be long before there is a crash between one of these toys and a buggy”

As Clancy points out, cars are more dangerous than a 10 lb skate board.

Would the comments be the same if there were groups of RUNNERS running on the sidewalk…about the same speed for a fast runner?

That being said,,,, I don’t like the scooters and don’t think Boise is in need of such things.
Yes, less vehicles due to the terrible parking and traffic in Downtown is a goal.

BUT the answer is WALK!!!!!

Boise is not so big– we don’t need a trolley to go 8 blocks and we don’t need a bunch of metal junk on our sidewalks.
IF someone so desperately needs an electric scooter- go BUY one. Take it with you. Don’t leave it on the sidewalk. Don’t buzz a patron right as they walk out a door onto the sidewalk.
The city of Boise does not need to subsidize or encourage such chaos. The GreenBikes fall in the same. Just not a good fit.

I predict a novelty.
So those of us in opposition can have some patience and when the shiny toy dulls a little; and those promoter businesses go out of business… it will be back to normal. Horses and buggies.
🙂

Personally, I’m waiting for the single rider injury. Our DT roads are so bumpy there is bound to be the face-plant digger when a front wheel hits one of our “asphalt features”.
Video time!

By: Clancy

Clancy — Fri, 26 Oct 2018 15:52:20 +0000

Just remember that scooters have not killed 2 people who were walking (in crosswalks) in the past week.

By: Burn Barrel

Burn Barrel — Fri, 26 Oct 2018 03:35:54 +0000

If I roast these things in my burn barrel is there any precious metals to be recovered?