A collision between a pedestrian and a scooter rider occurred on Monday, Sept. 21, just a few weeks after a scooter rider was hit by a car in a crosswalk.
Maddie Polk, a freshman economics major from Medina, Tennessee, was hit by a scooter on a sidewalk between the Boling University Center and the F building of Connor Community early Monday morning.
“I kind of moved to a left little bit, and I looked to my right, and about that time her shoulder like hit my face,” said Polk. “And I felt the scooter go all the way over my foot, but I didn’t really feel it at first because my adrenaline was going. She flew across the concrete so I tried to walk and go help her, and I couldn’t walk, and I looked down at my foot and there was blood all around my foot.”
Polk is waiting on MRI results to confirm the extent of the injury to her ankle. Polk is a member of the UT Martin Softball team, and depending on her injury’s severity, she could miss anywhere from six weeks to six months.
Polk said that she doesn’t mind the use of scooters around campus, but she encourages people to be more cautious when driving them.
“I wouldn’t say I have like a huge dislike of them, like obviously it was an accident, but I just think they need to go slower, to be honest,” said Polk. “Don’t be on your phone at all. That’s the main thing. I don’t care how fast they go or where they’re riding. Make sure that you know that the pedestrian has the right of way and not the person on the scooter.”
The Pacer received the following statement from Director of Public Safety Michael O’Neill:
“On September 21, 2026, at approximately 9:06 a.m., a police officer from UT Martin Public Safety responded to Crisp Hall following a report of a collision involving a student riding a scooter and a student who was walking on the sidewalk behind the University Center.
The pedestrian sustained an injury to the right ankle and was evaluated by EMS. EMS assisted the student from Crisp Hall, and the student later left the area in a private vehicle. The scooter rider reported no injury.
Both students were identified and spoke with police. Police also reviewed available security camera footage. The footage shows the scooter rider and pedestrian in the area immediately before and after the incident, but the collision itself is not visible on camera. No charges were filed in connection with this incident.”
Public Safety encourages people to use extreme caution when operating scooters and reminds people that pedestrians have the right-of-way on all walkways. Scooter riders that cause an accident could be civilly or criminally liable.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
