He falls from the scooter on the Sesto San Giovanni cycle path: 13-year-old boy died
Florence, scooter overwhelms scooter: one dead and two seriously injured
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August 31, 2021 The tragic death of the 13-year-old in Sesto San Giovanni rekindles the controversy over the use of scooters. The Milan Public Prosecutor's Office ordered an autopsy on the body of Fabio Mosca. The boy died after falling out of the vehicle of a friend of his and the mayor of Sesto ran for cover by requiring everyone to wear a helmet (today it is only for minors) and speed limits of 20 km per hour on cycle paths and 5 in the pedestrian areas.
The mayor: "There is no more time to waste"
"There is no more time to waste: waiting for Parliament to approve a law as soon as possible to regulate the use of these vehicles (equating them to mopeds), which, as we have seen on several occasions, can be really dangerous, we have decided to intervene, as far as we are concerned, with the aim of starting to compose a clear and precise regulatory framework. Unfortunately, on the street you can see many people who ride on electric scooters without a helmet and this can have terrible consequences: the helmet it is a fundamental protection that can make a difference and save lives in the event of accidents and falls. It should always be used ". Thus, in a note the mayor of Sesto Roberto Di Stefano.
Controversy over the rules
It is precisely on the rules to be followed that the controversy resumes strength after a series of accidents, in some cases fatal, have been recorded in a few months. Many parties are asking to intervene at national level after some municipalities and regions, such as Genoa and Tuscany, have taken the initiative by establishing limits and prohibitions with ad hoc ordinances. "They are welcome - affirms Alessandro Morelli, Deputy Minister for Infrastructures and Sustainable mobility - initiatives taken independently by Municipalities and Regions, but the problem must be addressed and solved at the national level ".
The governor of Lazio, Nicola Zingaretti, an eyewitness to an accident that occurred in the very central Via del Corso in Rome which fortunately did not cause any victims, argues that "the sector is without rules, it looks like a Far West. We need to intervene at national level or yes risk doing it yourself ".
To date, there are four bills presented in Parliament, two in the House and two in the Senate, on the safety and road traffic of scooters. Parliamentary examination in committee at Montecitorio is currently underway for one of these: it is the text presented by Roberto Rosso of Forza Italia, on which a cycle of hearings by experts on the subject was held until last August 4 in the Chamber. It is foreseeable that already with the resumption of the work of the committee, next week, the point will be made to understand how to proceed in the examination, especially after the latest incidents.
The text provides that devices capable of developing speeds above 20km / h must be equipped with a speed regulator not exceeding 6 km / h in pedestrian areas and no more than 20 km / h in general. The bill limits the use of the vehicle only to those who are 18 years old and wear a suitable protective helmet and high visibility reflective vest or shoulder straps. It also aims to introduce the obligation to proceed in a single row and not to be side by side, the prohibition to transport other people, objects or animals, to tow vehicles, to drive animals and to be towed by another vehicle and the the obligation to drive scooters by hand from half an hour after sunset on urban roads with a speed limit of 30 kilometers per hour.
5 deaths in seven months
The 13-year-old who died yesterday in Sesto San Giovanni is the fifth victim of scooter accidents since the beginning of the year. On February 9, a 34-year-old employee, married with children, lost her life in the Marassi district of Genoa, who ended up in an articulated vehicle while on board her electric scooter: not even a protective helmet can do anything against the violence of the impact. On 23 June in the Infernetto, a district in the hinterland of Ostia, a 52-year-old man loses control of his vehicle as he walks along via di Castel Porziano, hitting his face on the asphalt. A very serious trauma that costs him his life.
On 9 August tragic left around 2 am in the center of Florence: death toll, one dead and two injured. The victim is a 27 year old from Sri Lanka driving a scooter: according to an initial reconstruction, he is traveling along Viale Don Minzoni when he collides with a scooter. The violent impact throws him from the vehicle, making him bang his head on the curb. A few days ago in Rome a 27-year-old of Filipino origins died in hospital, the victim of a scooter accident on the Via Gregorio cycle path: after three weeks in a coma - the accident took place on July 29 - his heart stops beating. The dynamics are still uncertain, but no other medium seems to be involved.
Yesterday the death of the 13-year-old, who fell while - according to the first findings of the local police - he was traveling at high speed and without a helmet. The first Italian victim of scooter accidents - the only one in 2020 - is the 60-year-old from Budrio (Bologna), who collided in June at a roundabout with a car driven by a woman. According to official Aci-Istat data, last year - starting from May - road accidents with injuries to people involving at least one electric scooter were 564: there were 518 injuries among drivers and passengers. The special Asaps Observatory (Association of supporters of friends of the traffic police) records "a serious accident every three days".