Lime, a transportation company known for their electric scooters, announced that it will be implementing new technology to detect when users ride illegally on sidewalks.

If the new software detects someone illegally riding on a sidewalk for more than half the ride, it will send an in-app notification and an email to the rider that their action is illegal.

There are no penalties at this time.

Lime will implement the new software into 1,200 scooters located in San Jose and plans to expand them into San Francisco and Oakland.

“There’s no point to it if there’s not repercussions, but at the same time I feel like it’s stupid if there are repercussions,” said An Vo a Kinesiology major at SF State.

A 2020 study conducted by UCSF found that electric scooter related injuries and hospital admittances in the United States increased 222% between 2014 and 2018 and the number of hospital admissions increased by 365%.

Majority of those injured and hospitalized were between the ages of 18-35 and injuries were reported more frequently in urban areas. 

 “If you’re riding on the street, you’re gonna get hit by a car because people just don’t give a shit,” said Andrew Quellmalz Business major. “It’s scary shit to be on the street.”

Another issue which has not received as much media attention is accessibility for those with disabilities. Electric-assisted scooters and bikes often crowd sidewalks in city centers, making commuting difficult for those using wheelchairs, strollers, or other aids. 

In San Francisco, a majority of Lime scooters are located between the Civic Center and Financial District, and although Lime restricts the usage of scooters in certain locations and dubs them “red areas.” SF State is not one of them. 

However, SF State prohibits the usage of bicycles, skateboards and scooters on campus no matter if they are motorized or not.