A Milwaukee Common Council member is calling for tighter restrictions on scooters downtown after a collision seriously injured a pedestrian.
Ald. Bob Bauman called the incident, in which 20-year-old Jonpierre D. Cherry is accused of striking LaCage NiteClub owner Dave Wolz with a Lime scooter, “brutal to watch.”
Bauman, who represents the downtown area, said he plans to request a full review of safety protocols for scooters. Bauman said he would be asking the city’s Department of Public Works to initiate “further, significant” speed restrictions in the downtown area.
Currently, scooters are not allowed to be driven on sidewalks or on the riverwalk.
“I have been frankly skeptical of the wisdom of mixing electric scooters with vehicle and pedestrian traffic – especially downtown – since the beginning, and I have had enough,” Bauman shared in a June 18 statement. “The city’s abilities to keep scooter riders off sidewalks and to keep them from blocking public spaces [and public property] have simply proven to be inadequate.”
On June 17, Cherry was charged in Milwaukee County Circuit Court with one felony count of second-degree reckless injury. If convicted, Cherry could face up to 12½ years in prison and $25,000 in fines. Cherry’s initial court appearance was June 18.
According to the complaint, surveillance videos of the collision show Cherry almost struck another pedestrian before crashing into Wolz in the evening of June 16 at 1009 N. King Drive.
Wolz had been admitted to Froedtert Hospital after the incident and diagnosed with three broken ribs, a broken left ankle and a spinal fracture, according to the complaint.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Alderman calls for scooter restrictions after sidewalk collision
Reporting by Vanessa Swales, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Vanessa Swales, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | USA TODAY Network
