Photo: Google forums
E-scooters are already rather controversial in many parts across the world, especially given they’re very often used by teenagers with no knowledge of the traffic legislation. And a recent case from the United Kingdom signals the importance of such education at younger ages.
An e-scooter rider was caught not moving but actually standing in lane 4 of the M23 highway during the weekend. The Surrey Police explained the man ran out of battery power while traveling in the fast line of the high-speed road, so he was no longer able to move the vehicle due to the oncoming traffic.
Given the scooter has a private owner, it’s not even allowed on public roads in the United Kingdom, let alone a highway. So you can imagine how dangerous it was for the rider to be in the fast lane of a high-speed road, especially given the vehicle was no longer moving.
And that’s not even the end of the story.
It all happened at 5.30 in the morning at a time when, you know, the visibility on a highway isn’t necessarily the best, given it was still dark. And when asked what he was doing there, the e-scooter owner came up with the worst excuse ever: he blamed the navigation app, claiming that some piece of software like Google Maps sent him to the highway.
Truth be told, the excuse makes sense if he was using Google Maps in the car mode or Waze, as both these apps would provide navigation instructions for passenger cars and could indeed direct a user to a highway. And this is why you need to properly configure a navigation app, especially when you’re using it with a vehicle other than a car.
The e-scooter was sized, the Surrey Police says, and the owner has been reported for several offenses.
Given the scooter has a private owner, it’s not even allowed on public roads in the United Kingdom, let alone a highway. So you can imagine how dangerous it was for the rider to be in the fast lane of a high-speed road, especially given the vehicle was no longer moving.
And that’s not even the end of the story.
It all happened at 5.30 in the morning at a time when, you know, the visibility on a highway isn’t necessarily the best, given it was still dark. And when asked what he was doing there, the e-scooter owner came up with the worst excuse ever: he blamed the navigation app, claiming that some piece of software like Google Maps sent him to the highway.
Truth be told, the excuse makes sense if he was using Google Maps in the car mode or Waze, as both these apps would provide navigation instructions for passenger cars and could indeed direct a user to a highway. And this is why you need to properly configure a navigation app, especially when you’re using it with a vehicle other than a car.
The e-scooter was sized, the Surrey Police says, and the owner has been reported for several offenses.
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