E-scooter safety, boundaries questioned after Tampa man injured in crash

Scooter safety is in the spotlight after a crash left a Tampa man in critical condition.

Police say John Edgerton, 33, veered into the path of a tractor trailer on S 20th Street Thursday. It's an area within the boundaries of Tampa's scooter limits that's rife with traffic.

"A lot of semi-trucks go down to the port a lot of truck traffic on that particular road down there," said Jean Duncan, the Director Transportation in Tampa.

It might be a reason to re-evaluating the boundaries for the scooters.

"We certainly will be looking into our options to possibly restrict riding on high-speed roads," Duncan said.

But a plan was already in the works days before the accident, when Gov. DeSantis legalized riding the scooters on the road.

"We will certainly see how much more specific we want to be with any of that, and what our allowances are under the legislation to do that," she said.

Alex Sperring, who has been using the scooter service for three weeks, says the accident doesn't surprise him.

"It doesn't shock me," Sperring said. "I do feel bad for the fella, but it doesn't shock me. I feel like they're not too safe, as much as I enjoy them."

Though helmets are encouraged, they are not provided by any of the four scooter services in Tampa. Police say Edgerton was not wearing a helmet.