Fears for blind community over 'irresponsible' e-scooter use
Watch a report by ITV Anglia's Graham Stothard
A blind man has told how he came within inches of being hit by one of the electric scooters being trialled in Northampton.
Hugh Spence, who works for the Northamptonshire Association for the Blind, had to be held back by his sister as one of the scooters sped past him on the pavement.
He said: "It was about two or three inches away, so it would have hit me and would have really hurt if my sister hadn’t pulled me back.
"It was quite scary, I’m quite a confident person when I go out and about but it has made me a little bit worried about venturing into town by myself."
Northamptonshire County Council (NCC) and e-scooter operator Voi are currently partnering on a 12-month trial.
The riding of electric scooters on public roads is illegal except in areas like Northampton taking part in government-mandated trials. Even in those areas, only the hire scooters are allowed to be used and they must be ridden on the road.
However, there have been multiple videos shared online showing people riding the Voi scooters on pavements.
Problems with the scooters led to a similar trial in Coventry being paused just weeks after it was launched.
Mr Spence also said the issue of how the vehicles are parked was causing problems for the blind community.
He said: "People have been leaving them in the middle of paths and near bus stops, so when I'm using my cane or someone's got a guide dog it's just very difficult because it means we have to move out of the scooters way."
NCC's cabinet member for highways, Councillor Jason Smithers, claimed they were taking "proactive measures to reduce people using these scooters on the pavements and parking them irresponsibly", but defended the overall scheme.
He said: "We’ve got to take into consideration there are 6,500 users of this scheme at the moment which is a phenomenal success."
Voi also acknowledged that they needed to find "solutions" to certain issues.
"That's why we are doing this together with the city of Northampton," said Alex Klimt from the hire company.
"To identify the problems and over the course of a 12-month trial improve the service to make it the best and safe choice of mobility in the city."
Northamptonshire Borough Council have also expressed a desire for the e-scooter project to succeed.
Councillor James Hill, a member of the Conservative cabinet, said: "I think they’re a good idea, I just think in terms of the tweaks that need to be ironed out, that’s what we need to do.
"Thankfully now, Northampton county council are working with us to try and address some of those issues."