FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Fort Lauderdale officials have banned the use of scooters from Friday to Tuesday on the city's barrier island to coincide with the Tortuga Music Festival.
The new ban comes as the electric-power scooters have been involved in a number of crashes since they were introduced in November. This week, a 27-year-old tourist riding a scooter was killed when he was struck by car late Thursday along North Federal Highway. In December, a 14-year-old boy was seriously hurt after a hit-and-run crash along the same stretch of Federal Highway.
The city previously banned the scooters on the barrier island for several weeks during spring break because of increased traffic on sidewalks near the beach. City officials expect similar crowds this weekend for the three-day Tortuga Music Festival, featuring acts such as Kenny Chesney and Sheryl Crow.
Residents and city officials have complained that some riders of the scooters don't follow traffic laws, putting them in danger.
The ban on the barrier island applies to both electric or motorized scooters and any other forms of dockless mobility.
The boundaries of the barrier island include the beach, and up to the westernmost bank of the Intracoastal Waterway to the west, Southeast 17th Street to the south and Northeast 42nd Court to the north.