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  "path": "/transportation/2026/06/05/scooter-teen-crash-death-lane-tech-high-school-chicago",
  "publishedAt": "2026-06-05T10:35:00.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.wbez.org",
  "textContent": "<p>With summer break days away, Julian Hosek pulled up to Lane Tech College Prep on an e-scooter and locked it to a pole.</p><p>He was running late to class.</p><p>“I use [scooters] because I usually get to the train stops a little late,” said Hosek, a 17-year-old junior. “The bus is slower than the scooter. Or sometimes, the bus won't come.”</p><p>As the bell rang, more students arrived the same way — mostly teen boys, none wearing helmets — leaving e-scooters along the sidewalk, against fences, beside street signs.</p><p>E-scooters have become a part of daily life for some Chicago teenagers, offering a faster, more flexible alternative to buses and trains.</p><p>But their popularity among teens — who are at times under the legal riding age — is growing as the city sees a rise in <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/transportation/2024/10/09/lime-divvy-chicago-e-scooter-riders-serious-injuries\" target=\"_blank\" >scooter-related crashes</a>, raising <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/transportation/2026/05/04/chicago-launches-e-scooter-safety-campaign-in-wake-of-recent-scooter-deaths\" target=\"_blank\" >safety concerns</a> among doctors and city officials.</p><p>Two teens have <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/news/2026/05/01/loved-ones-launch-fundraiser-for-venezuelan-teenager-killed-in-south-side-scooter-crash\" target=\"_blank\" >died in Chicago</a> this year while riding e-scooters.</p><p>“I do worry that we will see an increase in [e-scooter] injuries as it's getting warmer and more people are utilizing these devices, and just increasing the opportunity for injury,” said Caroline Chivily, a pediatrics resident at Lurie Children’s Hospital.</p><div class=\"Enhancement\" data-align-center> <div class=\"Enhancement-item\" data-crop=\"\"> <figure class=\"Figure\"><a class=\"AnchorLink\" id=\"image-b00000\" name=\"image-b00000\"></a> <picture data-crop=\"medium\"> <source type=\"image/webp\" width=\"490\" height=\"275\" srcset=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/2d94554/2147483647/strip/true/crop/8192x4598+0+433/resize/490x275!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F6f%2F3d%2Ffc3844154b92902055f3701f3c66%2Flanescooters-260607-012.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/4c80cfe/2147483647/strip/true/crop/8192x4598+0+433/resize/980x550!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F6f%2F3d%2Ffc3844154b92902055f3701f3c66%2Flanescooters-260607-012.jpg 2x\" loading=\"lazy\" /> <source width=\"490\" height=\"275\" srcset=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/4308b6f/2147483647/strip/true/crop/8192x4598+0+433/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F6f%2F3d%2Ffc3844154b92902055f3701f3c66%2Flanescooters-260607-012.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" /> <img class=\"Image\" alt=\"E-scooters sit on campus at Lane Tech College Prep High School in Roscoe Village on the Northwest Side, Wednesday, June 3, 2026. | Candace Dane Chambers/Sun-Times.\" srcset=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/4308b6f/2147483647/strip/true/crop/8192x4598+0+433/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F6f%2F3d%2Ffc3844154b92902055f3701f3c66%2Flanescooters-260607-012.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/63d822a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/8192x4598+0+433/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F6f%2F3d%2Ffc3844154b92902055f3701f3c66%2Flanescooters-260607-012.jpg 2x\" width=\"490\" height=\"275\" src=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/4308b6f/2147483647/strip/true/crop/8192x4598+0+433/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F6f%2F3d%2Ffc3844154b92902055f3701f3c66%2Flanescooters-260607-012.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" > </picture> <div class=\"Figure-content\"><figcaption class=\"Figure-caption\"><p>E-scooters sit on campus at Lane Tech College Prep High School .</p></figcaption><span class=\"line\"></span><div class=\"Figure-credit\"><p>Candace Dane Chambers/Sun-Times</p></div></div> </figure> </div> </div><p></p><h3><b>Booming ridership</b></h3><p>Chicago launched its first <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/2019/6/11/18661876/electric-scooters-chicago-10-vendors-bird-bolt-gruv-jump-lime-lyft-sherpa-spin-veoride-wheels\" target=\"_blank\" >e-scooter pilot program</a> in 2019. By 2022, Lime and Divvy e-scooters became permanent fixtures in the city.</p><p>Since then, their fleets have expanded significantly. Lime, which is partially owned by Uber, has grown from operating 1,000 scooters in 2022 to 11,000 to date. Divvy, operated by Lyft, has expanded its fleet to 2,800 e-scooters.</p><p>Combined, e-scooter ridership for these two companies totaled almost 7 million trips last year, according to the Chicago Department of Transportation.</p><p>As their fleets have grown, so has the number of crashes. The Chicago Fire Department responded to nearly 200 e-scooter-related incidents in 2022. Within three years, that number had more than tripled.</p><p>Though Lime and Divvy require riders to be 18 or older — or at least 16 with parental consent — underage riders are still using them. An evaluation of the city’s 2020 e-scooter pilot program found that minors accounted for roughly 13% of reported injuries.</p><p>Lane Tech freshman Kaylee Hassman, 15, said she had no problem renting a Lime e-scooter. “I rented one for like 10 minutes to get home because it was just more convenient,” she said.</p><p>Data from Lurie Children’s Hospital shows that, among young people, kids aged 10 to 15 suffer the most injuries, ranging from skin burns to skull fractures.</p><p>“Oftentimes kids [that age] don't have the gross motor skills needed to operate the devices,” said Chivily, who noted there may be issues with balance, coordination “and the ability to assess and navigate really complex traffic routes.”</p><p>But Chivily said a lot of injuries stem from distracted riding, such as having multiple riders on one scooter and riders wearing headphones.</p><p>“A lot of these injuries are preventable,” she said.</p><div class=\"Enhancement\" data-align-center> <div class=\"Enhancement-item\" data-crop=\"\"> <figure class=\"Figure\"><a class=\"AnchorLink\" id=\"image-d70000\" name=\"image-d70000\"></a> <picture data-crop=\"medium\"> <source type=\"image/webp\" width=\"490\" height=\"275\" srcset=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/161bd97/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3330x1869+0+0/resize/490x275!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F4f%2F00%2F277e9b3c49c09a87074c9f81369f%2Flanescooters-260607-006.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c190f6d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3330x1869+0+0/resize/980x550!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F4f%2F00%2F277e9b3c49c09a87074c9f81369f%2Flanescooters-260607-006.jpg 2x\" loading=\"lazy\" /> <source width=\"490\" height=\"275\" srcset=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/47066d7/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3330x1869+0+0/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F4f%2F00%2F277e9b3c49c09a87074c9f81369f%2Flanescooters-260607-006.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" /> <img class=\"Image\" alt=\"Students ride an e-scooters afterschool at Lane Tech College Prep High School in Roscoe Village on the Northwest Side, Wednesday, June 3, 2026. | Candace Dane Chambers/Sun-Times.\" srcset=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/47066d7/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3330x1869+0+0/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F4f%2F00%2F277e9b3c49c09a87074c9f81369f%2Flanescooters-260607-006.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/b31e0fb/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3330x1869+0+0/resize/980x550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F4f%2F00%2F277e9b3c49c09a87074c9f81369f%2Flanescooters-260607-006.jpg 2x\" width=\"490\" height=\"275\" src=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/47066d7/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3330x1869+0+0/resize/490x275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F4f%2F00%2F277e9b3c49c09a87074c9f81369f%2Flanescooters-260607-006.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" > </picture> <div class=\"Figure-content\"><figcaption class=\"Figure-caption\"><p>Two students ride an e-scooter together near Lane Tech College Prep High School on June 3.</p></figcaption><span class=\"line\"></span><div class=\"Figure-credit\"><p>Candace Dane Chambers/Sun-Times</p></div></div> </figure> </div> </div><p></p><h3><b>‘It’s more of a manly, weird thing’</b></h3><p>Outside Lane Tech, most student riders are boys. This tracks with data from the city’s e-scooter pilot, which found that 60% of riders were male.</p><p>“I think that's because guys like to be together on scooters, and it's more of like their manly, weird thing,” said Lane Tech junior Ramona Scott. “Girls find it unsafe and not fun.”</p><p>Scott, 16, said she’s never ridden an e-scooter. But others have had troubling experiences.</p><p>“I've fallen off of them like once or twice,” said Taylor Clay, a junior at Lane Tech. The 17-year-old said he rode e-scooters to Lane Tech last summer whenever he was running late for football practice.</p><p>Another junior at Lane said he was hit by a car.</p><p>“My backpack flew everywhere,” he said, but “nothing really happened to me. I mean, the scooter locked, so it didn't let me get anywhere. I just didn't go to school that day.”</p><p>Despite the crash, he said he still scoots home sometimes — a 30-minute commute to the West Side during rush hour.</p><p>For some teens, the cost of an e-scooter is a limiting factor.</p><p>Milo Zima, a Lane Tech senior, said he used to rent one to hang out with friends.</p><p>“It was on the weekends for fun,” said Zima. “But like, at the time, I wasn't really making enough money to have like multiple hours on an e-scooter.”</p><p>A Lime scooter typically costs about $0.44 per minute to ride, plus $1 just to unlock it.</p><p>Hosek said he spends about $60 of his monthly allowance on e-scooters.</p><p>Luciana Lindemann, 17, said renting e-scooters a few times a week is too expensive. But she’s considering buying a scooter of her own. It would be cheaper than buying a car, she said, and she would spend less on buses and trains.</p><p>Still, she’s well aware of the risks of scooting on busy roadways.</p><p>“I'd probably ride on the sidewalk,” said Lindemann, “even though that's illegal.”</p><div class=\"RelatedList Enhancement\" data-module data-align-center> <div class=\"RelatedList-title\">Related</div> <ul class=\"RelatedList-items\"> <li class=\"RelatedList-items-item\"> <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/transportation/2026/05/04/chicago-launches-e-scooter-safety-campaign-in-wake-of-recent-scooter-deaths\" target=\"_blank\" >Chicago launches e-scooter safety campaign after recent deaths</a> </li> <li class=\"RelatedList-items-item\"> <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/transportation/2024/10/09/lime-divvy-chicago-e-scooter-riders-serious-injuries\" target=\"_blank\" >Chicago e-scooter riders face serious injuries, and no one’s tracking how often they’re hurt</a> </li> <li class=\"RelatedList-items-item\"> <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/news/2026/05/01/loved-ones-launch-fundraiser-for-venezuelan-teenager-killed-in-south-side-scooter-crash\" target=\"_blank\" >Fundraiser launched for Venezuelan teenager killed in South Side scooter crash</a> </li> </ul> </div> <p></p>",
  "title": "For Chicago teens, e-scooters are fun, convenient but sometimes dangerous, even deadly",
  "updatedAt": "2026-06-05T14:40:43.208Z"
}