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A comment on Paris Becomes the First European Capital to Ban Rented Electric Scooters. Parent comment

Re:Paris Becomes the First European Capital to Ban Rented El... by agumonkey on Sunday September 03, 2023 @02:04PM (#37372625)
Not to be contrarian but an e-scooter balance seems inherently less safe than a bike. It's actually one of the main concern when I'm around one, you see the base about to tilt ever 5m or so and you never know if the person splash in front of you.
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Re:Paris Becomes the First European Capital to Ban Rented El... by rcxdude on Sunday September 03, 2023 @02:09PM (#37372690)
The biggest issue is smaller wheels are less able to deal with bumps or holes in the road. Otherwise they're not significantly more unstable.
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Re:Paris Becomes the First European Capital to Ban Rented El... by agumonkey on Sunday September 03, 2023 @02:27PM (#37372890)
Maybe it's a matter of diameter. But quick changes in direction often make people have really scary swerves (center of gravity really off the scooter axis)
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Re:Paris Becomes the First European Capital to Ban Rented El... by Toutouxc on Sunday September 03, 2023 @02:53PM (#37373186)
Yeah, the center of gravity of a scooter is higher, which makes it MORE stable than a bike, try balancing a pencil on your finger and then a broom. Which one is easier to balance?

The swerves look scary because the wheels can move a LOT laterally before the rider starts to feel unbalanced and has to take corrective action (an actual turn). It’s an optical illusion.

Yes, the wheels on some scooters are quite small and ride poorly over potholes. That’s a real issue that the rider needs to account for.

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Re:Paris Becomes the First European Capital to Ban Rented El... by agumonkey on Sunday September 03, 2023 @04:11PM (#37373997)
I think the mechanics of a scooter are too different to compare to a stick.

I'd really love a mechanics engineer view on this because having a center of gravity up high seems similar to the unsprung mass problem.

It can be stabler for a little bit but become unmanageable. And somehow I wouldn't want to drive nearby "optical illusion". Above 20mph things need to be dead simple, not maybes.

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