Fresh crackdown on Melbourne e-scooter riders as man dies in tragic incident

A man has died after falling off an e-scooter in Melbourne as police crack down on riders who don’t follow the rules.

A man has died after falling off an e-scooter in Melbourne as police crack down on a growing number of rule-breaking riders.

The 28-year-old was riding the scooter along Cornwall Rd, Pascoe Vale, when he lost control while travelling over a speed hump around 8.20am on September 22.

He was not wearing a helmet at the time and was taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries.

The Pascoe Vale man died on Friday, September 30.

Investigations into the incident are ongoing and police will prepare a report for the coroner.

It comes as Victoria Police pleaded with e-scooter riders to be careful on the roads or face penalties.

Police are focusing their safety efforts in Brunswick, which is not included in an e-scooter trial across the City of Melbourne, the City of Yarra, and the City of Port Phillip.

The operation will run from Monday morning and will continue as police plan more activity to engage with riders over the coming months.

Fawkner Road Policing Acting Inspector Darren Kenos said the program was aimed at educating people and avoiding serious incidents.

Police pull over a woman riding a privately owned E-Scooter in Brunswick. Picture NCA NewsWire / Ian Currie

“Police, like the community, have seen more people frequently using e-scooters as a mode of transport across the Brunswick area,” he said.

“Any situation where high-powered e-scooters mix with pedestrians or other road users outside of the current trial only increases the risks, and this is only heightened if current road rules aren’t being followed.”

It comes after 487 fines were issued by police to riders across Melbourne since December 2021.

The majority of these were for failing to wear a helmet, riding e-scooters on the footpath and carrying more than one person on an e-scooter.

On-the-spot fines of $185 or more can be issued for noncompliance with trial e-scooter rules.

Police will also be cracking down on privately owned e-scooter usage, with legislation deeming any non-trial e-scooter that can travel more than 10km/h or is more than 200 watts to be illegal.

This means they cannot be ridden on any public roads, bike lanes or footpaths in Victoria.

Approved e-scooters taking part in the Victorian trial can be ridden on public footpaths, including bike lanes, shared paths, and low-speed roads with a limit of 50km/h.

High-powered e-scooters are considered a motor vehicle and riders can attract a $925 fine for using an unregistered vehicle, with e-scooters unable to be registered and ridden legally on roads.