Accessibility for Ontarians , a group which advocates for the rights of disabled Ontarians, wants the province to not go forward with a proposed five-year e-scooter pilot project before it begins.
Even with those limitations, allowing e-scooters on the roads will make it harder for people with disabilities to get around, and could lead to more injuries, said David Lepofsky, the chair of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act Alliance.
“We’ve got lots of proof that these pose a lot of problems,” Lepofsky told CBC Radio’s Ottawa Morning. “We don’t need to experiment on Ontarians.”
If the pilot does go forward, rider would need to be at least 16 years old and could not have passengers. Plus. the e-scooters could not exceed a maximum operating speed of 32 km/h.
Lepofsky also questioned the need for a five-year study that would be rolled out from one end of Ontario to the other.
“If you want to see if it’s safe on our roads, you do it for a much [narrower] piece of territory, not the entire province of Ontario, and for a much shorter period — six months or something like that is what we’d propose,” he said.
San Francisco-based Lime has already been lobbying Ottawa city Councillors, claiming its dockless e-scooters would be an ideal fit with the city’s stated transportation goals. Toronto will be hosting a pilot program with e-scooter firm Bird Canada.
