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Scooter riders concerned about safety

Submitted by Guest on Thu, 03/20/2008 - 5:15am.READ MORE:
Our local streets are filled with more than just cars and trucks these days; mopeds, bicycles and scooters are sharing the road with them. Scooters are becoming an economical alternative but riders are concerned about safety when it comes to sharing the road. Kim Morris, a resident of Carolina Beach, said,"This is a light bike. If we get hit by a car, the car is gonna win." Like bicycles, there is no minimum speed limit for scooters and the law requires following traffic to keep a safe distance. A scooter or moped is considered a motorcycle if it can go over 30 miles an hour, has an external shifter, or has a engine size larger than 50 CC's. Police say scooters and bikes aren't causing many problems when it comes to them sharing the road with cars. Corporal Franklin Kienast of the WPD Motor Unit, said, "A moped should take charge of his lane and he should ride to the left as much as possible in that lane to take charge of the lane and to keep people from encroaching into his lane." An owner must have a license, tags, insurance, inspection, and helmet.

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scooter riders

Submitted by Guest (not verified) on Wed, 07/14/2010 - 12:17am.

the law only requires a D.O.T approved helmet and that you obey traffic laws and the set speed limit for scooters according to the drivers hand book is 35m.p.h state wide and no insurance is required for 50cc and under mopeds.

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So What?

Submitted by Bhoneycutt (not verified) on Thu, 09/11/2008 - 6:23am.
If someone wants to exercise their right to ride a scooter then sobeit! Let them use the far right lane just like a bicyclist. It doesn't appear that the government, national or local, is doing anything to help the situation (ie. providing access lanes for scooters and cyclist), especially during these times of individuals and families trying to conserve. The rules of the road should protect these riders. It is the idiots that are in a freakin hurry all the time that causes accidents anyway. As well as the fools that are "left lane hogs" that want to do well under the speed limit. Part of driving is knowing how to respect other drivers, no matter what the mode of transportation. Other than that???.....stay home!
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Scooters

Submitted by James Lehan (not verified) on Wed, 09/10/2008 - 11:02pm.
My whole family bought scooters because of higher gas prices. Here in South Carolina though the people drive like maniacs. I have seen people pass all three of our scooters in a no pass lane where the speed limit was 25mph and then merge back in on us when they can't make it in time and nearly cause a wreck. We all have drivers license and our own cars but, we leave those parked when the weather is good. Too many bad drivers and drunks here though it gets scary from time to time.
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Makes good economic sense

Submitted by Drew Barfield (not verified) on Mon, 06/09/2008 - 6:10pm.
My wife and I are both UNCW students and both double-majors. We're choosing to get a scooter mainly to drive back and forth to campus (about 5.4 miles round-trip). With gas today reaching $3.99(9), it's time to say no to OPEC, even if that comes with an unfortunate decrease in safety. My car gets 30 mpg so 30 mpg / 5.4 miles = 5.5 campus-home round trips on one gallon, but a scooter that gets 80 mpg gets 14.8 campus-home round trips on one gallon! (don't expect to get the 100+ mpg the manual states) I will soon be filling-up less often and paying only the cost of 1.3 gallons. Drew Barfield
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Scooters

Submitted by ScooterNerds of Wilmington (not verified) on Wed, 05/06/2009 - 6:22am.
Hello, Gas is on it's way back up. Scooters are a great way to save on fuel costs. 4 stroke, 50cc scooters can achieve up to 100mpg. Riders must be 16 or older and wear a DOT approved helmet and obey the laws. H.Baumann, Owner of Scooternerds of Wilmington,LLC
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Enough of the stereotyping!

Submitted by Scooter Lady (not verified) on Tue, 05/06/2008 - 5:06pm.
I choose my scooter over my car as much as possible to use less gasoline (I get 100 MPG on the scooter!) and when I use less, it helps keep the price down for you (it's called "supply and demand"). It also helps the earth and lessens our ties with places like Saudi Arabia. No, I have not lost my driver's license and in fact have a spotless driving record. Yesterday, on my scooter, twice I had to pass cars that were going too slow (about 15 MPH in a 35 MPH zone). So there.
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Many scooter riders are very

Submitted by guest007 (not verified) on Fri, 03/21/2008 - 9:10am.
Many scooter riders are very safety conscious. However... Many are not. I've seen many making left turns with no signal, edging past traffic in the right lane in intersections and generally acting like traffic laws don't apply to them. If you're going to ride a scooter, you've got to follow the rules of the road just like everyone else and maybe even more so. Like the person in the article said, if you get hit by a car, the car is going to win.
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Correction

Submitted by Motorcyclist (not verified) on Thu, 03/20/2008 - 9:13am.
This statement is incorrect in relation to moped (scooter) ownership and operation: "An owner must have a license, tags, insurance, inspection, and helmet." A simple 30 second search on the NC DOT DMV website says: " You must be age 16 or older to operate a moped on North Carolina highways or public vehicular areas. A driver license is not required, and the moped does not have to be registered, inspected or covered by liability insurance. A motorcycle safety helmet is required by law when operating a moped on North Carolina highways. A moped cannot have a motor of more than 50 cubic centimeters, an external shifting device or have the capability of exceeding 30 miles per hour on a level surface." Link
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Horse crap!

Submitted by guesty on Thu, 03/20/2008 - 9:05am.
Yea, how many moped riders do you see riding in the middle of the lane going 10 to 15 below the limit?? They don't have tags, insurance and most likely a revoked license rider. They aren't called liquor cycles because they are cute. Those damn things need to stay to the far right edge of the road.
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scooters

Submitted by chacoptaco (not verified) on Thu, 03/20/2008 - 8:50am.
i live down by the snows cut bridge and coming home one night i noticed traffic was going slow. i thought there may be an accident up ahead, but around the bend there was a man on a scooter tooling along in the middle of the lane holding up traffic. the traffic was pretty heavy too with people wanting to get home. the speed limit on that section of c.b.road is 55mph. he must have been going 30. this is an ongoing problem. many scooter and bike riders ride too far out into the lane traffic has to swerve around them. someone is going to get drop kicked and either injured or killed one of these days. scooter riders are supposed to wear helmets, have licenses and insurance. someone told me that many of these riders have lost their license to drive thats why they ride scooters.
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scooters

Submitted by jack Thomas (not verified) on Sat, 11/20/2010 - 11:12am.

well, not everyone that rides a scooter has lost their license because of a DUI. I ride my scooter because it is fun and economical. I deserve to be on the road like everyone else and WILL NOT put myself in danger by riding on the side of the road and having people swerve around me. There are people that are making scooting look bad, such as the ones weaving through stopped traffic at lights and such, but the police need to do a better job keeping an eye out for this, as with regular motorcycles. Alot of car drivers on the road are unsafe and texting or picking their butts to begin with and making it unsafe for everyone, but especially scooter riders. No matter what your opinion of them is, car drivers need to be safe and keep their distance just as with driving a regular car. Nothing scarier than having some jerk almost hitting you while swerving around. Scooters are ALLOWED to be on the road and must be treated just like any other vehicle.

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