by Carla Caruso

You would’ve seen them parked alongside your Park Lands or riders zipping down footpaths on them.

E-scooters — some love the convenient mode of transport (and the ease of hiring them), others hate them.

While long-awaited legislation to allow the use of private e-scooters on the State’s roads and footpaths might not change until next year, the SA government continues to grant temporary extensions to councils running e-scooter trials, including the Adelaide City Council.

Not all are happy, though, that the CBD’s e-scooter trial has been extended again — among them, writer and APA follower Bethany Cody. She has the rare genetic disease, retinitis pigmentosa (RP), which results in progressive sight loss.

Here, she shares why she’s upset about it. And, as with the photos she recently posted online, she doesn’t hold back.

“I’m not shocked, but I’m definitely dismayed that the Adelaide City Council has extended the e-scooter trial beyond April 2024, when it was said to be coming to a close last year.

I’m not shocked that the trial has been extended when Beam and Neuron are paying a weekly permit fee of $1,622.30 to the Adelaide City Council. That figure speaks for itself.

Council seems to be interested in financial gain over the safety of South Australians with disability and non-disabled community members more generally.

Since last year, nothing has changed. People are still riding e-scooters recklessly – not wearing helmets, riding with two people to one scooter, not ringing the bell to warn of their approach, zipping by at speed on footpaths and giving no room for pedestrians, and abandoning scooters carelessly on the path where they present as a huge hazard.

If the council is looking at improving how these e-scooters are operated, they’re not doing so fast enough. This issue is not being prioritised, and people with disability are being treated as an afterthought.

It’s infuriating. It makes me feel like my safety and right to participate equally in society and be included is being thrown to the wayside.

The Department for Infrastructure and Transport, the South Australian government, and Adelaide City Council need to work together with South Australians with disability to figure out how we can safely coexist, and consult directly with us, otherwise we are being discriminated against and excluded and that’s not right.

These e-scooters have been trialled in Adelaide for five years. That’s a significant amount of time that the Adelaide City Council, Beam, Neuron and the South Australian Government could have easily consulted with Adelaideans with disability on how to ensure our safety, and come up with solutions that benefit everyone.

I don’t necessarily want to see e-scooters banned, but I do want to feel safe when I’m getting around the city and not have to be stressed, worrying that I’m going to get knocked down or injured by tripping over misplaced scooters.”

Deputy Lord Mayor Keiran Snape also wrote about the issue, following a Council meeting, in his March newsletter, saying:

“A report from the [Council’s] Infrastructure and Public Works Committee recommended that we extend the e-scooter trial for another 12 months to allow the State Government more time to finalise its review and make legislative changes.

“While I am supportive of e-scooters, I’ve had some concerns around them blocking the streets and creating accessibility issues.

“As such, I requested an amendment to the motion to include a request for administration to work with operators to bring in designated ‘docking bays’.

“Unfortunately, the amendment didn’t receive the support of the chamber and the motion was moved as printed.”