E-Scooter-Fahrten unter Substanzeinfluss im Einzugsgebiet von Würzburg – eine erste verkehrsmedizinische Auswertung nach 4,5 Jahren

E‑scooters have been part of road traffic in Germany for over 4.5 years and have since then become more important in police traffic control. The present study aims to give a first description of e‑scooter cases in the catchment area of the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Würzburg.

All driving ability reports on e‑scooter riders (n = 84) between June 2019 and January 2024 were retrospectively evaluated. Performance deficits, driving errors, circumstances and the substances detected in blood were analyzed.

Almost all e‑scooter riders in our study population were men aged between 20–30 years. Most riders were under the influence of cannabis, amphetamines or alcohol. The main reason for traffic control was missing or expired insurance license plates. The times of offenses had a tendency towards the evening through night and towards warmer seasons of the year. The offenders showed less performance impairment during the medical examination performed later than during the police examination.

Compared to previous e‑scooter studies, this work also examined the influence of drugs on e‑scooter riders. The retrospective data analysis revealed similar trends, e.g., in terms of age, gender and seasonal distribution but also some differences. The results show the need of further studies examining the influence of drugs on e‑scooter riding.