For USC student Crystal Kirui, sharing campus walkways with electric bikes and scooters means watching riders weave through pedestrians and experiencing close calls with collisions.
“Just watch where you are going,” the sophomore biochemistry major said.
Kirui said she hasn’t been hit yet, but that she knows people who have been struck. Many students like her are concerned about how riders move through shared spaces.
New data shared with Annenberg Media from USC Student Health now puts numbers behind those concerns. A preliminary review of medical records from the 2025-2026 academic year identified 481 initial visits for injuries involving micromobility devices, including scooters, bicycles and skateboards. Motorized scooters accounted for 43% of those visits.
Numerous follow-up visits brought the total to over 700, meaning that some injuries required care beyond an initial appointment.
“We’re seeing an increasing role of motor scooters,” said Dr. Angie Ghanem-Uzqueda, an epidemiologist and clinical assistant professor of family medicine at USC Student Health.
The figures only describe visits to Student Health, rather than every collision or injured student around USC. Ghanem-Uzqueda said students with more serious injuries may seek treatment at an emergency room, hospital or urgent care facility, leaving those cases outside her department’s records.
Most injuries treated at Student Health involved scrapes, cuts and bruises, primarily affecting arms and legs, said Ghanem-Uzqueda. About 5% involved fractures or broken bones, while approximately 15% were head injuries, with some involving concussions.
Ghanem-Uzqueda added that medical records showed that 91% of students did not report wearing a helmet, which could increase the potential for head injuries.
For some riders, helmets simply do not exist in their routine.
Justin Nguyen, a third-year business major, and Paul Liu, a senior business major, said they had been riding their electric vehicles for about a year. Neither had a helmet.
“Do we need helmets?” Nguyen said.
Nguyen said he has fallen multiple times but not headfirst. Liu said he once witnessed a close call involving another rider, although he had not experienced one himself.
Both also said that they do not always walk their devices where signs direct riders to do so. Liu said stopping to walk through the Village felt inconvenient when he was only passing through.
David Carlisle, assistant chief of the Department of Public Safety at USC, said DPS has received reports of 17 e-scooter collisions in its patrol area since the Fall 2026 semester began. He said he thinks this number substantially understates the total.
Security camera operators observe many minor collisions that never generate a report, Carlisle said, and more serious collisions have caused severe head injuries, broken bones and lost teeth.
“It is a problem, and I think it requires the cooperation of the student body to help us reduce the number of collisions and injuries,” he said.
Carlisle identified West Jefferson Boulevard and McClintock Avenue, central campus, and the West Jefferson Boulevard and South Hoover Street area as places where heavy traffic creates opportunities for collisions.
He said DPS cannot issue roadway traffic citations — only the Los Angeles Police Department can do that — but the department has discussed an educational campaign with LAPD, Carlisle said. Those options remain under discussion.
Student Health is also collaborating with DPS to better understand how their injury and collision records overlap, Ghanem-Uzqueda said.
Ghanem-Uzqueda also noted distraction, high speed and multiple people riding a device designed for one person make riding micromobility devices less safe.
“We need to be a little more responsible with how we’re using them,” she said. She urges riders to slow down, pay attention and put their phones away.
Carlisle’s advice echoed that appeal.
“Ride courteously. Be thoughtful of the fact that you’re on a crowded college campus. Ride safely. Make it safe for everyone.”
Edited by Jadon Frank and Ally Nakamura