August 25,2025
RED FM News Desk
An emergency physician is urging children not to ride e-scooters and advising adults to wear helmets and slow down, as hospitalizations linked to these devices have risen sharply over the past year.
“These are vehicles, so no one under 16 should be riding them. It’s heartbreaking to see young children suffer serious injuries. These are fast and potentially dangerous machines,” said Dr. Steven Friedman, a Toronto-based emergency physician, in an interview with CTV’s Your Morning last week.
A July report from the Canadian Institute for Health Information found a 32% increase in e-scooter-related hospitalizations in one year, climbing from 375 to 498 cases.
Friedman explained that hospitals are treating a wide range of injuries, including brain bleeds, facial fractures, and broken skulls, ribs, knees, pelvises, and elbows.
While micromobility devices like e-scooters, bikes, and e-bikes are becoming more affordable and popular in crowded cities, he noted that municipalities cannot control who buys them—but they can regulate who is allowed to operate them.
Rules for e-scooter riders vary across provinces. In Ontario, riders must be at least 16, and helmets are mandatory for those under 18. In British Columbia, riders must also be 16 and wear an approved helmet. In Nova Scotia, the minimum age is 14, and helmets are required for all riders.
His warning comes as Toronto police launch an e-scooter and e-bike safety enforcement campaign, following a city council recommendation to raise public awareness about the risks associated with these vehicles.
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