AN INCREASING number of people were injured in e-scooter collisions in Hampshire last year. 

The Department for Transport figures show 94 casualties were recorded by Hampshire Constabulary last year.

It was up from 69 in 2021 and an increase from 17 casualties two years prior.

Hampshire follows the overall trend across the country with a rising number of e-scooter casualties.

Last year there were 1,458 casualties involving e-scooters – up from 1,434 in 2021 and 484 in 2020.

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The statistics show there were 12 deaths due to e-scooter collisions. Of them, 11 were e-scooter users and one was a pedestrian.

Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, said: "As the e-scooter trials rumble on these figures show that the vehicles are in frequent use – and apparently all-too-frequent collisions – across the whole country. Real life is very quickly getting ahead of legislation.

"As ministers ponder the future of these devices it is important councils are better funded to keep highway surfaces up to scratch so all road users – not least those on two wheels – don’t fall foul of the rash of potholes which remain far too common."

Private e-scooters cannot be legally ridden on roads or pavements in the UK but have become a common sight, particularly in urban areas.

Trials of rental e-scooters on roads in dozens of towns and cities across England are ongoing.

The figures reveal that e-scooter users made up the majority of those severely or slightly injured with 1,106 hurt (76 per cent), while 233 pedestrians were injured (16 per cent).

The remainder were cyclists or occupants of other motor vehicles.

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A Department for Transport spokesperson said: "Safety is at the heart of our e-scooter trials and privately-owned e-scooters remain illegal to use on the road."

The spokesperson explained the department is committed to protecting all road users and is investing £5bn from 2020 to 2025 to help authorities maintain local roads, with an extra £200m announced in the Budget.

They added: "This will help them fix millions of potholes a year and resurface roads up and down the country, making journeys smoother and safer for everyone."