A pedestrian advocacy group is calling for tighter restrictions for e-scooters with the number of ACC injury claims increasing by almost 40 percent.
Four years ago the Ministry of Transport proposed changes to allow e-scooters to use cycle lanes and limit their speed to 15km/h to encourage riders off the footpath.
But there is no indication about when, if at all, the rules will change.
Between 2021 and 2023 there were more than 7000 e-scooter related claims lodged with ACC and last year there was a 37 percent increase.
It does not take long walking in Auckland's CBD before you come across an e-scooter.
Lori Mackness lives in Auckland CBD and spends her days in constant fear of colliding with one as she navigates the streets in her wheelchair.
"I don't go to places that I used to go because I am tired of feeling so scared, I'm tired of that tenseness and that pit in my stomach."
A year ago Mackness spoke to Checkpoint about the many near misses she has had with e-scooters and a collision which landed her in hospital.
Since then things have got far worse.
"They're supposed to give way, they are not supposed to double dinky, like have a second person on it, those two are ones that I see like they never give way, never."
Mackness often has to move off the footpath and onto the road to avoid a pile up of dumped devices.
"You cannot get through so many areas on the footpath because they're just left there, they're just, they're just dumped."
Living Streets Aotearoa member Gay Richards says they have been inundated with feedback from pedestrians who had suffered lasting injuries due to e-scooters. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi
Currently e-scooter riders are allowed to use the road and the footpath. If using the road, riders must be as near as possible to the edge but are not allowed to use the cycle lanes.
One downtown Auckland rider said they rode on the footpath because they felt the cars drove too fast.
"I think it's a lot more dangerous trying to navigate like the speed in which the cars are moving."
Another said ther was no room on either the footpath or the road.
"On the footpath you end up hurting people, on the road the cars end up hurting you."
Four years ago the Ministry of Transport consulted on allowing e-scooter riders to use cycle lanes and limiting the speed limit to 15km/h on the footpath.
But the changes were never progressed and the ministry could not confirm whether they would be enforced in the future.
If e-scooters were allowed in the cycle lane, some riders said they would move off the footpath.
"That absolutely needs to be changed, there needs to be a safe place for e-scooters."
Another rider said in order to get cars off the road and promote active transport, scooters should be able to use the cycle lane.
"Everyone's trying to get... people moving through the city and if we really want people to start using them rather than having to congest Auckland City, that's the only way that this becomes viable."
Local councils can set curfews for when e-scooters can be used, where they can be ridden and set speed restrictions through geo-fencing technology.
Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch council all have several low speed zones, mainly in their central business districts where a limit is set at 15km/h.
But Living Streets Aotearoa pedestrian advocacy group member Gay Richards said that was still too fast.
"Even that is a pretty fast speed when you consider that the average walker is doing 4 to 5 [km] and a mobility or sight impaired person is likely to be doing a bit less than that."
Richards said they had been inundated with feedback from pedestrians who had suffered lasting injuries due to e-scooters.
Between 2021 and 2023, there were over 7000 ACC claims for e-scooter related injuries, in 2023 there was a 37 percent increase.
Both Wellington and Auckland council provide several dedicated parking zones for e-scooters in the city. Christchurch is trialing two locations.
In Auckland, council officers monitor e-scooter parking to check they have been left in a suitable spot, if there is an issue the operator has an hour to fix it.
In Wellington and Christchurch, the operators themselves were in charge of monitoring parking.
But pedestrians like Lori said providers were not taking responsibility, and she wants to see e-scooters banned for good.
"Life would be safer for a lot of people if they did have to close down because they are not responsible providers."
Checkpoint has approached the Minister of Transport Simeon Brown for comment.
