The rider was travelling at just 15mph as he tried to join the 70mph traffic.
Police were left stunned when they spotted a man on an e-scooter trying to join traffic on a motorway.
Video of the incident show the rider coasting down the chevrons at around 15mph and about to join the traffic. Police managed to catch up with him and stop him before he swerved into the traffic.
The incident took place on the M606 in Bradford, and West Yorkshire Police shared footage of the incident on Twitter.
The force said: “Officers on patrol were shocked to see this e-scooter on the chevrons trying to join a live motorway lane with 70mph traffic.
Scooter seized and rider reported. Privately owned E-scooters cannot legally be used on a public road or pavement and only on private land.”
M606, Bradford – Officers on patrol were shocked to see this E-Scooter on the chevrons trying to join a live motorway lane with 70mph traffic. Scooter seized and rider reported. Privately owned E-Scooters cannot legally be used on a public road/pavement and only on private land. pic.twitter.com/4SAYOuTUim
— WYP Roads Policing Unit (@WYP_RPU) June 18, 2021
E-scooters have been growing in popularity in recent years and there is plenty of debate over their safety. Under UK law it’s permitted to ride an electric scooter on private land as long as you have the landowner’s permission.
But it’s an offence to ride them in public – including on paths, pavements and roads.
Earlier this month, a Met Police boss warned about them being dangerous though. Simon Ovens, who is from the force’s road and transport policing command, called e-scooters “absolute death traps.”
Tory Mp Lord Blencathra has also labelled them “silent killing machines.”
Whereas in 2018 there were just fours recorded e-scooter collisions, this figure has risen by 700%. In 2019, YouTuber Emily Hartridge became the first person to die in an e-scooter crash.
