Students Hear About e-Scooter and e-Bike Safety This Summer

Nemaha County Sheriff Deputy Casey Moyer spoke to fourth- and fifth-grade students at Calvert Elementary last week about e-bike and e-scooter safety ahead of summer break.
Moyer reminded students that e-bikes and e-scooters can be dangerous because of their speed and encouraged riders to wear helmets, elbow pads and knee pads every time they ride.
“These things go really fast, and they can be really dangerous,” Moyer said.
He encouraged students to inspect their equipment before riding by checking tires, brakes, lights and overall fit of safety equipment. Moyer also warned against distracted riding, including wearing earbuds or texting while operating scooters or bikes.
Students were reminded that e-bikes and e-scooters must follow traffic laws, including stopping at intersections and riding responsibly around pedestrians on trails and sidewalks. 
Moyer asked the group, “who is going to win if a scooter and a car collide?” Students responded with the correct answer, the car.
Auburn Mayor and part-time deputy with the Nemaha County Sheriff’s Office Chris Erickson also spoke to students, encouraging them to slow down at intersections and remember that drivers may not always see them.
“We want you to have fun this summer,” Erickson said. “But we also want everyone to be safe.”
He also reminded everyone that currently these vehicles are not allowed for use at the Auburn City Rec complex and trail. However, Erickson said Auburn is reviewing how other communities regulate e-bikes and e-scooters as their popularity continues to grow and may possibly modify Auburn ordinances. 
Community Meeting on e-Bike and e-Scooter Safety
A second meeting was held concerning the e-bikes and e-scooters filling the streets of Auburn. Conducted at the Auburn Wellness Center by Wellness Center Manager Katy Billings and City Administrator Crystal Dunekacke, the Thursday afternoon meeting covered many of the things Officer Moyer noted in his talk at the school. What set the two meetings apart, however, was the goal. 
As explained by Dunekacke, Auburn’s rules and regulations surrounding the e-bikes and scooters are currently in a very grey area. They are not bicycles, nor are they motorcycles, and so rules that pertain to either of them can be misinterpreted. 
It was the hope of Billings and Dunekacke to gain insight from parents and children who owned the vehicles as to what sorts of ordinances and rules would be best to implement into Auburn’s community. Many different ideas were bounced around the almost thirty attendees and while nothing could be decided on just yet, Dunekacke mentioned speaking with Auburn’s Safety Committee and the Ordinance Committee to try and draft ordinances that might be passed in regards to the e-bikes and e-scooters.
Those children who were interested in helping to decide some of those rules and regulations were asked for the contact information of their parents and it was agreed that a week from that meeting, Thursday, May 21, another Wellness Center meeting would be held to discuss with those involved the drafts created by the various committees. Dunekacke hopes to have something solid to bring to the City Council during their next meeting so that viable rules can be decided upon before the summer gets too far under way.