Source : Perth Now news
A 13-year-old boy from rural Queensland has died after a shocking e-scooter crash left him hospitalised with ‘severe head injuries’.
Emergency services were called to Macrossan Street in Childers, a small Queensland town inland from Bundaberg, on Wednesday after a “single-vehicle crash involving an e-scooter”.
“The boy riding the scooter sustained serious head injuries and was flown to Queensland Children’s Hospital in a critical condition,” a Queensland Police spokesman said.
“He succumbed to his injuries on August 29. Investigations are ongoing and there is no further information at this time.”
Shortly after the incident took place, the Australian Medical Association’s Queensland branch called for urgent law reforms around e-bikes and e-scooters.
AMA Queensland president Associate Professor Erica Gannon said doctors had been “imploring the government to fix the law” by introducing age restrictions on the devices.
“Children under 16 years simply do not have the skills needed to ride these devices safely, especially around vehicles, other riders and pedestrians,” she said.
“The physical effort required to ride, accelerate and maintain higher speeds on a conventional bicycle can influence how riders behave around traffic and when entering and exiting streets, riding on footpaths and giving way to other road users.”
Professor Gannon said teenagers are more likely to take risks as a normal part of childhood development, but it also means they shouldn’t operate devices like e-scooters or e-bikes.
“In the wake of yet another tragic crash, the government’s new laws, due to start Monday, raise significant concerns regarding ongoing safety and risks to Queensland children, as a complete ban on child riders was not legislated,” she said.
Under current Queensland laws, children aged 12-15 are allowed to ride e-bikes and e-scooters under adult supervision.
