Why Was Fatal E-Scooter Rider Described as a Pedestrian?
The problem with the reliability and validity of official collision records is exemplified again in the fatal collision of an e-scooter rider in north-east London Ontario on Wednesday, September 17, 2025. For the first day of reports the local CTV News agency was reporting that a “pedestrian” was hit on Beckworth Ave. And since the roadway was closed no one could get close enough to confirm the reports that likely came from the investigating London City Police.
Next, on September 18th CTV News reported that a “scooter” driver died at that location. But the word “scooter” conjures up different meanings. Was this a push scooter without an electric engine? Because of the limited speed at which a push scooter can be operated it can be operated very differently on London’s roads. And the concerns of health officials and road safety experts would not be triggered by the growing trends of e-scooter driver injuries and deaths.
Then on September 18th CTV News posted a new article entitled “E-scooter safety under spotlight after operator dies in London crash”. Investigating police reportedly clarified that this scooter was “…the one that you stand on…”. So this description of the involved scooter is much different than the initial description which stated that a pedestrian was struck. But is that important?
In our detailed observations of cyclists in London Gorski Consulting has also observed many e-scooters. Informally we have observed on many occasions that e-scooters are being operated at a much higher speed that the maximum 24 km/h permitted by the Ontario Highway Traffic Act. This is also a trend with some e-bikes which are observed travelling much faster than a typical pedal-bike.
Historically those cycle riders who could attain average speeds above 20 to 25 km/h were those riders who were experienced and knowledgeable. They could be seen with superior equipment and they invested in safety equipment such as bright clothing, helmets and proper lighting. And because of their higher speeds they also tended to travel on roads designed for motor vehicle traffic or on designated cycling paths or tracks. So it would be rare that such riders would be seen riding “very quickly” on a sidewalk for example. But exceptions always exist.
What is happening now though is that inexperienced riders, and ones who do not understand the importance of safe riding, are getting on e-scooters and e-bikes and they are attaining substantially faster speeds than those riding on higher-end pedal cycles. What is more is that many of these e-riders are riding on sidewalks at much higher speeds than pedal-bikers. While there were safety benefits for some riders of pedal-bikes to ride on sidewalks on dangerous roadways the situation is changing for the worse where this safety benefit is being negated. Riding an e-device at high speed on a sidewalk, or anywhere with motor vehicle traffic, is creating a new safety problem that is not being captured in official collision statistics.
A research paper “Characteristics of outdoor motorized scooter-related injuries” by Sofiia Desiateryk, Sarah Zutrauen et. al. reported on Canadian hospital data from 2012 to 2017 and concerns were expressed that scooter injury rates were increasing. In July, 2025 the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) also publicized a report that they commissioned to look at safety issues surrounding e-bikes and e-scooters. The CAA report included the finding that “…Official collision data is inconsistent and often lacks key details, including recording whether an e-bike or e-scooter was involved”.
The poor reporting of the current collision in London high-lights the need to recognize that better, public reporting in crucial to address any road safety developments.
Far Too Much Biased Politics But Sometimes A Stand Must Be Made
At Gorski Consulting we try, as much as possible, to stay away from biased politics and focus on preventing needless injury and death from transportation incidents. However if you stand for nothing you fail as a human being. Thus we post this photo of the scars of a black man that many in the U.S. want to have removed from public viewing in the current Trumpist regime. Those scars represent not only the man you see. They represent the suffering of all man (woman)kind who deserve a better life no matter what race, religion, sex, age or whatever. We all deserve a life of peace, freedom and respect.
Police Request Help With Driver Drowning Near Lake Simcoe But Location Not Given
CP24 News reported that a young female driver became trapped in a submerged vehicle near Georgina Ontario on Saturday, September 13, 2025. Police reportedly found the submerged vehicle at approximately 0240 hours. At the present time the driver was reported in critical condition. CP24 News reported that police were looking for witnesses and/or any dash camera footage of the incident. The problem is that the site of the incident was never given. And the delay in reporting the occurrence means that persons who might have been in the area may have already left.
The drowning could have occurred at several locations near the area of Metro Road near Lagoon Drive. For example, the Googlemaps view below shows a swampy area on the roadside of Metro Roadjust west of Lagoon Drive.
Another potential location of the drowning could be along Lake Drive near the intersection with Lagoon Drive, as shown in the Googlemaps view below.
It seems pointless that police would request information from any witnesses or camera footage of a drowning incident when the public was not informed of the incident for several days and the actual site of the drowning was never revealed. CP24 News reported that the incident occurred in the “…area of Metro Road and Lagoon Drive” but several locations in that area contain bodies of water where such a drowning could occur.
In order to be effective calls for public assistance need to be made at the earliest time and, obviously, the site of an incident needs to be identified if police can have any reasonable expectation that the public will detect that they have some evidence to report.
Concerns About Electric School Bus Fires in London Ontario Are Only Part of the Story
You can tell that an electric school bus is coming when you hear a melody being played by the bus. No this is not some rap artist playing his music to gain attention. This is because electric buses do not produce sufficient noise and this could be a safety issue. The music kicks in a low speeds, usually below 35 km/h. But there are more pressing safety issues with electric school buses.
Lion school buses have been grounded after a wiring problem reportedly caused a bus to catch fire in Montreal last week. Lang Bus Lines in London, Ontario own 50 such buses and they will conduct examinations before the buses are let back on the road. But this is not the only problem that has plagued the Lion bus manufacturer.
As reported in our Gorski Consulting article of July 28, 2025, Lion went bankrupt. The following text is taken from our article:
“It was with considerable fanfare that local politicians in London announced that they were helping a local school bus operator to buy new electric buses from Lion Electric Company. In an article posted on June 21, 2024, the local CTV News outlet in London announced that the Canadian federal government was providing Langs Bus Lines in London with “$44.6 million in grants and loans to make the transition”. It was dubbed as a great success story. Yet, only a year later (according to an Electrick.co article of July 26, 2025) Lion was going bankrupt and its liquidator was sending letters to bus owners that the warranties on their buses were now void.
What is puzzling about this news is that a consortium of two firms from Quebec and Ontario bought the bankrupt Lion firm this summer and they are the same persons who owned it previously, this according to the Electrek article. So the new Lion has reformed but is not liable for its commitments to its previous clients even though, essentially, they are the same company? It all seems very confusing.
Locally, the federal funding to Langs Bus Lines in London was supposed to cover the cost of 200 new, electric, Lion buses and the charging infrastructure likely installed on their grounds. Some of those Lion buses were seen operating this past school season without complaints from local drivers. Limited charging meant that they could not be used for long distances outside of the City. With the Lion bankruptcy it is questionable how those buses will operate if they need repairs. And student safety must be maintained above all regardless of the financial difficulties.
It remains questionable why the federal government spent 44.6 million dollars, as reported in June, 2024 when the Lion company became bankrupt sometime before July, 2025, or less than a year after the announcement of the federal money. And the persons who would seemingly benefit from this are the same persons who previously owned Lion. Meanwhile bus operators such as Langs would seem to be left paying for the repairs of the new buses.“
The rest of our article can be viewed on the Gorski Consulting website by searching for the July 28, 2025 posting date.
Observed Cyclist Helmet Use In London Ontario
Observations of cyclists by Gorski Consulting in London Ontario have shown that two-thirds of male cyclists do not wear helmets. Yet for females that percentage is about half. More recent observations have taken place in 2025 such that over 1000 additional cyclists have been documented just to the end of August. This data will likely be revealed at the end of the calendar year. The table below shows the results from cyclist observations between the years 2022 to 2024.
While more females appear to wear helmets the numbers of females observed on or near roadways is much lower than males.
For example the above table shows that in the years 2022 to 2024, 2736 male cyclists were observed, yet only 428 females were observed. Thus only 13.53 % of the observed cyclists were female.
Little attention has been paid to these facts. While there is considerable publicity in official circles that we must increase the number of cyclists while decreasing the use of motor vehicles no one has publicly noted that observations of female cyclists are uncommon.
Similarly, any emergency department physician will tell you that the use of a helmet reduces the severity of cyclist head injuries. Yet nothing is done in the region of London Ontario to publicize that fact. Major head injury is not just a statistic. It is a fact that visits many cyclists at a time when it is too late to change the outcome because the injury has already occurred.
A recent encounter with a cyclist emphasized the point that cyclist helmets are not something that every cyclist believes they can afford. On July 30, 2025 we encountered a male cyclist at the intersection of Highbury and Huron Street in London, as shown in the photo below.
A closer view of his bike is shown below.
The bike has no reflectors or lights and is not equipped with a bell. The owner complained that police had pulled him over and charged him for these omissions and also because he was not wearing a helmet. He felt he was targeted by police. He told us that he understands a helmet would help reduce his chances of head injury but he complained that helmets were too expensive. He observed that very often helmets cost almost as much as his bike.
In contrast one of my cycling buddies recently bought a brand new MIPS helmet for $49 in a sporting goods store in London. For the average person that cost is not a problem. However many cyclists are at the low end of the economic scale and any cost could be prohibitive. A program could be engaged whereby helmets are purchased for some lower income riders but that has not happened. The costs associated with major head injuries are astronomically higher than the price of a helmet therefore it is a societal benefit to fit as many cyclists as possible with helmets.
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