DETROIT – Hundreds of Bird scooters have popped up in Downtown Detroit and Ann Arbor. The company touts the scooters as the fast and affordable way to get around, but Local 4 has learned of potential dangers for riders.
Many people riding the scooters are ending up in emergency rooms, with doctors treating many who have taken a hard fall.
The scooters go up to 15 mph, but riding them on Michigan roads and sidewalks isn't always a smooth ride.
What started as a quick commute on a scooter ended up with a trip to an emergency room for John McGomery, who broke his jaw and wrist and has hearing damage.
McGomery said he was launched from the scooter.
Mike Ruzycki, a member of the Local 4 sales team, is in rehab after taking a hard fall from a scooter in Downtown Detroit.
Across the country, emergency room doctors are seeing patients who have fallen from the scooters and ended face-down on the sidewalk.
Doctors at Detroit Receiving Hospital said they've recently seen a big uptick in knee, shoulder and back injuries, and many of the victims were on scooters.
Many people also ride the scooters without helmets. It's not a law that riders have to wear helmets in Michigan, but it is required in other states.
Bird will send riders a helmet for free if it is requested on the app.
You can watch Hank Winchester's full story in the video posted above.