'E-scooters - do riders of these things care?' - Your Letters: February 5

EYE-OPENING DRIVE ON ROADS

The other morning I decided I would have an adventure! I decided to visit that wonderful town on the hill - aka Dudley. I left home and while passing the supermarkets saw this man - 40s going by the amount of grey in his hair - riding one of those scooters with tiny wheels. Over the canal bridge, past the pub and joined the traffic queue at this month's roadworks on Bridgnorth Road.

While waiting 'scooter man' passed me. Lights changed and I set off surprised at the speed of the scooter along the pavement. When I got level I eased off a bit and discovered it was travelling at 26mph (if my speedo is accurate) and continued my journey. As I passed I realised the rider had no helmet on. Wazzock I thought. A bit further on I saw Picasso's apprentices painting their symbols on the road, dodging traffic as they did so. Seeing these artists at work reminded me that the paintwork they, or their fellow artists had put on Poolhouse and Ounsdale roads. Nothing else done just paint applied. Perhaps Staffordshire Council should do some of the work indicated as essential by their artists. In other words be proactive in making good the road surface instead of waiting for insurance claims from people with damaged motors and thus being reactive.

The rest of my journey passed without incident.

One or two major things struck me though about the journey, 25+mph is too fast a speed to scoot along the pavement, especially as it was weaving in and out of pedestrians. Riding like that would result in serious injury to pedestrians. And probably the helmet less twerp on the thing. Are they supposed to travel on pavements? Is this one too powerful to be legal where it was ridden? And where was a number plate? Was it rated or insured? Do riders of these things care? Only one, printable, name for such people, pillocks!

Michael Gough, Wombourne