Students on scooters are now a common sight on campus, but you have probably never seen a rider that follows all of the rules.

There have been many minor scooter accidents around IU’s campus, but the first serious reported crash happened last weekend during Saturday’s tailgate. Witnesses say the 20-year-old student rider lost control heading south down Fee Lane and crashed near the intersection of Law Lane. The rider struck his head and witnesses performed CPR until first responders arrived. Among the witnesses was IU junior, Ethan Prescott. After seeing the crash, Prescott believes the scooters are a campus safety hazard. He said, “There was a genuine time where I didn’t know if he was alive or not and that was honestly kind of scary for me to see that.” The rider was transported to IU Health Bloomington and remains in serious condition with severe head trauma.

Although that was the first serious reported accident, there have been many unreported crashes and injuries on campus. IU senior, Brandon Mackles hopped on a scooter outside of Kilroy’s last Saturday that sent him on a trip to the ER. He says several of his friends have gotten injured on the scooters.  “Just in just the past three days, I’ve had three friends that have fallen,”‘ Mackles said. “One has scratches all over his face. One has scratches all over his stomach and another one just sprained the same foot that I sprained last night.”

Electric scooter rules include wearing a helmet and staying on the sidewalks. While riding on campus, IUPD reminds students to always share the road and never ride against traffic.