Recent scooter deaths raise safety concerns

Riders advised to use caution on roads

By SEAN PATRICK NORRIS, Staff Writer

Published 12/03/08

After two deaths in scooter accidents in less than a week, police are asking motorists to use more caution on the roads.

Judy Wright, 50, of Pasadena was the second motor scooter rider to die recently in a crash.

She was driving her Kymco scooter south on Magothy Beach Road in Pasadena at about 7:30 p.m. Sunday when she hit a Toyota Scion in the D Street intersection, county police said.

"It was a freak and terrible tragic accident," said Steven Goodman, Ms. Wright's nephew. "That was her transportation and she was never the type of person to depend on anyone else to get back and forth from work. She was really independent."

Ms. Wright's death followed a fatal collision on Nov. 24. A 55-year-old Brooklyn man was struck and killed while driving his scooter near Baltimore Washington Medical Center.

Sgt. John Gilmer, police spokesman, said that with the increased number of motor vehicles on area roadways, drivers should be more cautious when traveling.

"Over the past 10 years vehicles have evolved and many of the motor scooters that are seen today were not traveling on the roadways 10 years ago," he said.

Sgt. Gilmer also said scooter drivers should be aware of the specific regulations regarding their vehicle. Riders of scooters with engines over 50 cubic centimeters, for example, are required to wear a helmet.

"A lot of times people who buy these scooters are not sure what regulations they are under," Sgt. Gilmer said.

Initial investigations show Ms. Wright was approaching the D Street intersection at the time of the crash, police said.

Jessica Wurtzer, 18, of Pasadena was eastbound on D Street and stopped at the intersection before heading across the street. Ms. Wright apparently rode into the side of her car, said Justin Mulcahy, another police spokesman.

Battalion Chief Michael Cox, county Fire Department spokesman, said when emergency crews arrived Ms. Wright was unconscious.

She was taken by ambulance to Baltimore Washington Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead. Police said Ms. Wright was wearing a helmet.

Mr. Goodman said his aunt was a tough woman who cared for her family and commuted on two wheels her whole life.

"I couldn't put it on one thing she did," he said. "She treated me and my sister and my cousins as her own kids. She was like a second mom to all of us. She took that role on when nobody said she had to."

George Steiner, owner of the Vmoto dealership in Annapolis, said scooters have a lot of benefits, including 70 to 100 miles per gallon, easier parking and lower costs. His company offers lessons on safe scootering.

"We have a course that the people go through when they buy from us," he said. "It's a brief course that we offer for free about safety tips and basic operational skills of a motor scooter."

Mr. Steiner said scooter riders should drive defensively, keep their mirrors adjusted and should always wear helmets.

In the Nov. 24 crash, Mark Schoonmaker was driving a Taizhou scooter south on Elvaton Road just after 7 p.m. when a Jeep Cherokee made a left turn onto Tall Pines Court and struck him in the intersection.

When police and paramedics arrived, they found the Jeep on top of the scooter, and Mr. Schoonmaker lying several feet away, police said. Mr. Schoonmaker suffered severe injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Both accidents are under investigation, police said.

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Misinformed...big shock - December 5, 2008

T.Jackson, you were misinformed by just the type of clueless MVA authority that would be administering any new laws or regulations. MD law says that any scooter/moped with an engine smaller than 50cc's, most on the market today are 49.9cc's, do NOT need to be registered, and no helmet is required. They may be parked in the same manneer as a bicycle. For all intents and purposes, and in the eyes of the law, they are basically bicycles. Helmets are advised, given how badly people drive, but there is no law to the contrary...personally I'd like to see law enforcement spend their time looking for the people who are stealing scooters, not those riding them...