6 events in Passaic County with a date

Hard to handle

E-scooter injuries are rising, but pending New Jersey law targets only e-bikes

By: Scott Fallon
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey

..... Tram Huynh didn't have much experience riding an electric scooter in 2025 and through the front wheel could clear the curb into the driveway of a North Bergen apartment complex.
..... The lip was too high. Huynh was sent flying - and broke her left ankle.
..... "I didn't think I was going too fast, but one moment I'm on the scooter and the next I'm on the ground, she said. "It was the worst pain I ever felt"
..... New Jersey will be instituting the first wave of regulations for electric bikes this month, [07/2026] including requiring riders to have licenses, registrations and insurance by July 19 [2026] in an attempt to cut down on crashes.
..... But electric scooters are not covered under the new law, according to the sate Motor Vehicle Commission, despite a rise in crashes and injuries hat some dispute.
..... The law exempts form the regulations "low-speed" electric scooters that cannot go above 19 miles per hour. some in the e-bike and e-scooter industry say the law is confusing, with different regulations for different devices at different speeds. the law does not mention scooters that can travel faster than 19 mph, but a transportation expert said they're covered under previous regulations.
..... "According to our interpretation of everything we've seen, higher-speed electric scooters are not street-legal," said Leigh Ann Von Hagen, executive director of Rutgers' Alan M. Voorhees Transportation Center.
..... "That has been the case for six or seven years."
..... E-scooters have become an increasingly convenient way for New Jerseyans to cover short distances - especially in cities, where they can zip past back-up traffic. they don't consume gas or emit pollution. They can fold under a desk or elsewhere. they're inexpensive compared with a car.
..... They're used by commuters, tourists, food delivered, kids having fun.

Hospital visits for e-scooter injures on the rise

..... Emergency department visits from scooter-related injuries have rinse in recent years. About 74% of 360,000 visits to emergency departments involving e-bikes, e-scooters and hoverboards in the United States were linked to scooters, said a 2023 report by the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
..... "The faster you go, the more risk of injury their is," said Dr. Kevin Chen, an orthopedic surgeon who treated Huynh at Palisades Medical Center in North Bergen. "Head injuries are a big concern. We're seeing a lot of young people with clavicle fractures, tibial shaft fractures, lower skin and wrist fractures."
..... Rutgers researchers say the notion that e-scooters are more dangerous than e-bikes or traditional bicycles is unfounded. A 2024 report examining hospital records showed that e-scooter riders did not have a greater risk of serious injury that bicyclists and e-bicyclists.
..... New Jersey's car-centric infrastructure sometimes leaves little room for e-scooters. Traveling on a busy road may be dangerous, but traveling on a sidewalk outs pedestrians at risk and may be illegal, depending on the town.
.... Speed is a the heart of the risk. A pedestrian walks about 3 to 4 mph. Casual bicycle riding about 1- to 14 mph. e-bikes are capped at 28 mph under the new law and e-scooter at 19 mph.
..... Low-speed e-bikes that have pedals and motor assistance that top out at 20 mph requires license and registration. E-bikes with motor assistance or a throttle that top out at 28 mph require license, registration and insurance.
...... Many e-scooters weigh slightly more than a standard bicycle, while e0bikes are about three to four times the weight of a bicycle, ranging form 45 to 70 pounds due to batteries and mechanical components.
..... "There are always bad actors in may mode of transportation, but it's really a question over speed rather than device," Von Hagen said. "that's a big part of the safety conversation.
..... Major cities across the globe form Honolulu to Paris have enacted strict regulations for e-scooters, including come outright bans. Lime, one of the biggest e-scooter-sharing companies, has a training mode on some of its models to cap speeds at 8 mph and offers training on its app. It says almost every ride ends without a reported incident.
..... Supporters of more regulation say both the lack of training and the lack of protective equipment - along with ignoring the rules of the road - are to blame for the increase injuries in both riders and pedestrians.
..... A 2021 study of injuries riders in Washington, DC, showed that only 2% e-scooter riders wore helmets, compared with 66% of bicyclists. As a result, more e-scooters suffered concussions and loss of consciousness.
..... There are also infrastructure problems: Riders have few dedicated and protected bike lanes that lower the risk of injury, and there are roads that may be riddled with potholes. That has prompted EPS-scooterist to ride on sidewalks even in places where that is prohibited.

Scooter mishap leads to surgery

..... Tram Huynh, 23, was visiting her boyfriend from California in May 2025 when she borrowed his e-scooter to take for a job interview in Hoboken. She had ridden it a few times for shorter trip. The rid that day from and to his North Bergen apartment was smooth until the very end., when the e-scooter didn't clear the driveway lip.
...... The pain shot through her ankle. A passerby came to her aid, but Huynh quickly realized she couldn't get up. "My foot was jelly," she said.
..... She eventually made her way to Palisades Medical Center where Dr. Kevin Chen, he on-call orthopedic surgeon that day, examined her. Huynh considered returning to California, for surgery, but Chen said he could operate on her the next day and she would likely have better results if her injury was treated as quickly as possible.
..... The surgery took three hours, and she was back at her boyfriend's apartment the next day. Huynh used crutches for almost two months, and her left foot and lower leg were in a boot until August.
..... These days Huynh doesn't feel comfortable putting too much stress on her ankle. So when she jogs, she no longer picks up the pace and runs. And Huynh said she will never ride on an e-scooter again. "they're just too dangerous," she said.
..... The one benefit of the experience? It cemented Huynh's decision to seek a career in health care. she will be attending medical school in Pennsylvania this year. [2026]

..... This article contains information from USA Today.

HOME