For many UT students, scooters are the easiest way to get around. They’ve become a regular part of life in Knoxville, and as more of them hit the streets and sidewalks, safety is getting more attention.
Knoxville Police Department spokesperson Scott Erland said the department has recorded 16 scooter-related collisions citywide since August 2023, 13 resulting in injury. No fatalities have been recorded over the last two years. The majority of the incidents occurred downtown, including accidents on Broadway, Clinch Avenue and North Central Street.
Chris Cherry, a UT professor of civil and environmental engineering who studies micromobility, believes scooters can be a safe and sustainable mode of transportation when the right environment is in place, but can also expose riders to risks when the infrastructure is inadequate.
“I’ve been really interested in electric micromobility because it has a lot of opportunities to draw people into a low impact mode of transportation that wouldn’t otherwise do that,” Cherry said. “Campus is a good example. It’s really hard to get from the agriculture campus to the engineering side quickly. Running buses is an option, but empty buses aren’t very sustainable. Scooters, walking and biking, are faster and more sustainable. The big question is, how do you do that safely?”
Caroline Caldwell, a senior at UT, witnessed a scooter accident this semester at the corner of 16th Street and Highland Avenue, right in front of the Renaissance II apartments.
“At first, I just thought someone had fallen over on a scooter and that nothing serious had happened,” Caldwell said.
The rider, who was wearing a helmet and a neon safety vest but no other protective gear, worked for a local restaurant that provides delivery and was on his way back to work.
“I’m almost certain that the cause of the accident was due to the uneven paving of the road on this street,” Caldwell said. “I’ve been told that construction has been working in that area all summer, and is continuing through the semester. The area where he fell looks like a giant speed bump, and is so dangerous. I’ve seen multiple cars, including my own, absolutely mess up their undercarriage because of this ‘speed bump.’”
Caldwell and her friend called an ambulance, while another bystander ran to the fire station to get help.
“The aide showed up and checked the guy out, who was seemingly dazed and just wanted to get back to work,” Caldwell said. “Once he was medically cleared, which I did not agree with due to him slurring his words and swerving when (he) was riding back on his scooter, he went back to work.”
The incident left Caldwell feeling anxious, questioning whether she could have done more to help in the moment. The experience underscored for her how unprepared bystanders can feel in emergencies. She said the biggest relief was knowing the rider had avoided serious injury, something she believes would not have been the case if he hadn’t been wearing a helmet.
Many day-to-day scooter crashes stem from issues like the one Caldwell witnessed, according to Cherry.
A student rides a scooter on campus by Circle Park. Monday, Sept. 8, 2025.
“Most of the time, people hit something. They hit a curb, they hit a pothole, they hit some piece of broken infrastructure,” Cherry said.
Cherry added that the most severe scooter injuries happen when cars are involved.
“When you look at the safety data, all of the severe injuries are from cars. Scooter riders get hit by cars. The safest campuses in the country are those without much car traffic,” Cherry said. “That’s the major risk factor. When car traffic is reduced, conflicts are reduced and everything else becomes safer.”
Cherry believes part of solving those risks requires rethinking street design.
“You don’t need just a stick of low stress bike lanes here and there,” said Cherry. “It has to be a network of low stress infrastructure, because you need to be able to go your entire trip without being dumped into a dangerous intersection. Andy Holt Avenue and Volunteer Boulevard is a good example, that giant intersection is a safety disaster for micromobility. That’s not low stress.”
He added that policies should adapt to everyday problems riders face.
“If there’s a pothole in a scooter zone, have a policy to fix it within 24 hours. That’s the kind of response that directly improves safety,” Cherry said.
Knoxville adopted a Vision Zero plan in 2022, committing to eliminate traffic deaths and serious injuries by 2040. The strategy includes improving street design, expanding low stress bike and scooter infrastructure and reducing car related conflicts.
