It was bad enough Mayor Bloomberg vetoed sensible legislation to ban the installation of car alarms in New York City. Now, he has actually vetoed a bill that would ban the sale of those small, motorized scooters that plagued our neighborhoods over the summer. 

What can the mayor be thinking? Yes, they are already illegal to drive in New York City, but that didn’t stop local teenagers and young men from buying the inexpensive vehicles and driving them through the streets day and night, disturbing and waking up residents. 

The scooters are also just plain dangerous. The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission reported nearly 5,000 emergency room injuries involving the scooters in 2000. Because they are so low to the ground, they are difficult for drivers of cars to see. Those who ride the scooters rarely use helmets or take other safety precautions. And the gasoline-powered vehicles are also a fire hazard as they are usually illegally stored in apartments. 

The mayor doesn’t seem to understand the extent to which car alarms and scooters disturb New Yorkers’ quality of life. We know he likes to travel with ordinary New Yorkers on the subway every day. Maybe he also needs to spend a summer night somewhere other than his cocoon-like East Side townhouse.