SAN DIEGO (KGTV) -- The San Diego Police Department says pedestrian fatalities are going up in California - so they're cracking down on drivers, pedestrians and those violating laws that pertain to motorized scooters.
All of this, just as new reports show a flood of scooter-related injuries backing up local emergency rooms.
Wednesday night SDPD sent out targeted patrols to downtown and Lincoln Park. Two spots where pedestrian and bike collisions have increased in the last three years. In many cases, traffic violations led to those crashes.
10News watched as officers ticketed more than 50 people, and gave out more than 20 warnings. Sixteen of those tickets - to people on scooters.
In response to a recent influx of patients with scooter-related injuries, Sharp Hospital created a "safe scooting" section on their website. Among the tips? Always wear a helmet.
Local emergency rooms reported daily visits - with injuries including broken wrists, twisted ankles, lacerations and head injuries.
Other injuries reported were by people who weren't even riding them - but simply tripped over scooters left laying out.
At the time of this story, no data was out on exactly how many scooter-related injuries have happened in San Diego, but police said they've investigated thousands of fatal and injury collisions involving bikes and walking pedestrians.
SDPD is currently working to compile a list of overall scooter injuries. 10News will report when the numbers are out.
