A man has died after falling off an e-scooter in central Auckland on Monday.
In a statement today police confirmed "a 23-year-old man has passed away following an incident involving an e-scooter in central Auckland on Monday 16 September".
On Monday St John Ambulance confirmed to 1 NEWS a person was taken to hospital in a critical condition after falling off a Lime Scooter on Westhaven Drive.
In a statement today Craig Hobbs, Auckland Council's Director of Regulatory Services said:
“We are extremely saddened to hear of this news this evening and our thoughts and condolences are with the young man’s family and friends at this difficult time.
"We have been in contact with Lime since Monday evening when we first heard reports of an accident in the Westhaven area.
"Lime has given us a verbal update and provided us with a report.
"We will continue to work with the operator and the police as required.
"We are currently in the final six weeks of phase two of our trial, and we will soon be evaluating what we have learned and the information we have gathered during the trial.
"Safety has always been paramount to us, and balancing this with significant demand for micro-mobility options is something that many cities around NZ and the world are grappling with.
"The council and AT licence ride-share e-scooter companies to operate in our public spaces under the Trading in Public Places Bylaw however rules for using e-scooters are set by NZTA under road user rules. These cannot be regulated by local councils and include where you can ride e-scooters,” Mr Hobbs said.
Police also endorsed the safety message surrounding e scooters and said they have referred the death to the Coroner.
“While e-scooters are not classed as motor vehicles, they are classified as vehicles and are subject to the same rules which apply to other low-powered vehicles such as e-bikes.
"Police's message is always to be safe when using any kind of vehicle. With e-scooters, we ask users to be considerate of other road or footpath users, to travel at safe speeds for the conditions, don't drink and ride, and we recommend wearing a helmet for your own safety,” police said in a statement.
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