Teenage e-scooter driver in critical condition after crash

A teenager riding an e-scooter suffered life-threatening injuries when he was struck by an SUV in southwest Winnipeg on Monday night.

Witnesses provided first aid to the injured rider, who police said is under 18, after the collision happened at Waverley Street and Arbour Meadow Gate/Lake Crest Road at about 9:30 p.m.

“It feels like it happened in slow motion,” said driver Audrey Vanderspek, who was waiting at a red light when she witnessed the incident. “Maybe it’s because you’re helpless, that it just feels like everything slows down in the moment.”

Police said the electric scooter rider was crossing Waverley and was hit by a southbound 2010 Honda CR-V. The posted speed limit on that stretch of Waverley is 70 kilometres per hour.

Exact ages weren’t released, but police said the rider and SUV driver are in their late teens. Police wouldn’t confirm the injured teen’s gender but a witness told the Free Press the rider was a boy.

The injured teen remained in hospital Wednesday after being transported in critical condition. The SUV driver stayed at the scene and was interviewed by investigators.

City Coun. Janice Lukes, whose Waverley West ward includes the intersection, was saddened to learn of the collision.

“It’s horrifying,” she said.

Canadian physicians have reported an increase in e-scooter riders being hospitalized for collisions and falls, alongside the growing popularity of the vehicles. The Manitoba government is taking steps to regulate e-scooters by bringing them under the Highway Traffic Act.

Vanderspek said she was in southbound Waverley’s left lane, waiting for a turning light to switch from red to green before she could head east on Lake Crest, when she noticed the e-scooter rider.

The thoroughfare that crosses Waverley is called Lake Crest Road on the east side (in Waverley Heights) and Arbour Meadow Gate on the west side (in Bridgwater Forest).

Vanderspek said the teen, headed south, appeared to be in the “sidewalk area” while he crossed Arbour Meadow Gate. She said he then turned to head east on Lake Crest on the south side of the intersection.

“It’s horrifying.”

“I didn’t even see what the (traffic) lights were doing because I was distracted with him crossing (Waverley),” said Vanderspek, who was with her 14-year-old son and 11-year-old daughter.

“There was another witness there who said they could confirm the light was green for the (SUV).”

Police did not say who had the right of way.

Vanderspek said the e-scooter rider, who wasn’t wearing a helmet, was thrown when he was struck by the SUV. She and other witnesses called 911.

Her son, who has first aid training, was among those who went to the injured boy’s aid, she said.

“There were bystanders there pretty quickly to help as they could,” Vanderspek said.

She said the SUV’s female driver appeared to be shaken while witnesses checked on her.

Police asked anyone with information or dashcam or cellphone video of the collision or moments beforehand to call the traffic division at 204-986-7085 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 204-786-8477 (TIPS).

Concerns about e-scooter safety have escalated while national figures show hospitalizations for children and adults increased by almost 40 per cent between April 2025 and March 2026.

The Canadian Institute for Health Information said 837 hospitalizations were reported, up from 601 in the previous 12 months. Hospitalizations of kids aged 15 and under almost tripled from 54 to 150.

A longtime Winnipeg Blue Bombers volunteer suffered serious injuries when he was hit by an e-scooter while directing football fans after a game in July.

Earlier this summer, city police published safety guidance that encouraged e-scooter users to ride respectfully, wear a helmet, yield to pedestrians, be alert and share the road. Parents were advised to review safe riding habits with their children.

“There were bystanders there pretty quickly to help.”

Police issued a reminder Wednesday, saying e-scooters are not toys, while citing a recent Canadian Pediatric Society study that documented 10 deaths and 47 other cases in 2025 involving personal powered micromobility devices.

The study said e-scooters were the most frequently implicated device, the most commonly injured group was boys aged 10 to 15, and head injuries were most common.

New regulations for e-scooters, passed by the Manitoba government June 1, are not yet in place.

Amendments will ban the use of personal electric vehicles on roads where speed limits are greater than 50 km/h, and on sidewalks (unless marked by a traffic control device allowing their use).

Drivers must be 16 or older, and must wear a helmet. Speeds will be restricted to a maximum of 25 km/h. Passengers will not be permitted on e-scooters.

Last month, Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Lisa Naylor said an enforcement start date and fine amounts had not yet been set.

“They’re really, really dangerous for young kids, but they’re so wonderful for mobility. It’s such a double-edged sword.”

Manitoba’s new health curriculum in schools will include lessons about dangers associated with electric scooters and electric bikes, the government has said.

Lukes, who chairs council’s public works committee, said the city will align bylaws around personal electric vehicles once the province’s amendments come into effect.

“It’s very dangerous right now. I see (e-scooters) all over, and kids and no helmets,” she said. “They’re really, really dangerous for young kids, but they’re so wonderful for mobility. It’s such a double-edged sword.”

City hall’s process is taking into account Winnipeg’s networks of trails, multi-use paths and cycling lanes that share road space with motor vehicles.

Staff are expected to make recommendations to council on how best to regulate personal electric vehicles later this year or early in 2027.

“Once something’s on the road it falls under the Highway Traffic Act. We have these shared pathways with shared road space, and this is what they’re having to work through and figure out how they’re going to enforce it, police it, monitor it and what kind of rules they’re going to do,” Lukes said. “It’s complicated how it’s going to work.”

Morden’s city council introduced its own rules for personal electric vehicles in June to, among other things, ban them from sidewalks, mandate helmets and require a headlight and rear light or reflector in darkness. Penalties include a $50 fine.

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca