GRAND FORKS — An Altru Health System nurse practitioner said she’s seen more micromobility-related injuries as the popularity of e-scooters and e-bikes increases.
Margot Miller is a nurse practitioner on the Altru Orthopedics and Sports Medicine team in Grand Forks. She didn’t have data on the number of micromobility injuries seen in her department, but she said, anecdotally, that she’s seen more injuries with the increase in popularity of these devices on the Greater Grand Forks Greenway.
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“From an orthopedic standpoint, the biggest concern is the speed of the devices and what they can reach,” Miller said earlier this month. “Injury patterns can look similar to what we see with a normal bike, but at higher speeds that can create greater forces and much more significant injuries than just a general bicycle.”
The Greenway, where many people in Grand Forks and East Grand Forks ride these devices, has a speed limit of 15 mph for bikes and scooters, according to the Grand Forks Police Department. Fully motorized bikes and electric motorcycles are only allowed on roads in Grand Forks. East Grand Forks follows similar rules, but it has an
ordinance regulating e-bike use
on t...