A 57 year-old man is believed to be the first fatality in Manteca involving an electric scooter.

The collision happened Saturday night at 8:21 p.m. in the 200 block of North Airport Way.

The 57 year-old was riding against traffic southbound on the east side of the street in an area with no street lights.

He attempted to cross to the west side of the street when he was struck by a vehicle traveling on Airport Way.

Manteca Police officers were first on the scene. They started life saving measures until medics arrived.

They were relieved by medics. The man was transported to an area hospital but medical personnel were unable to revive him.

Police said it was not known whether the scooter light was on or if the man was wearing a helmet or other protective equipment.

His brother and daughter were also riding scooters. They stayed on the east side of the street and were not involved in the collision.

The 46 year-old driver of the vehicle stopped and cooperated with officers.

Any witnesses are urged to call Manteca Police Dispatch at 209.456.8101.  

In California, motorized scooters are subject to specific laws regarding operation, speed, and safety. Riders under 18 must wear a helmet. The maximum speed for scooters is 15 mph, and they are prohibited from sidewalks and highways with speed limits exceeding 25 mph unless within a Class II or Class IV bikeway. 

A valid driver's license or permit is required to operate a scooter. 

Motorized scooters and electric scooters, according to the California DMV site,  generally must follow the same rules of the road as other motor vehicles. This includes obeying traffic laws, yielding to pedestrians, and respecting stop signs and signals.

Since 2010, 52 people have been killed in traffic accidents on the streets of Manteca. That does not include the 120 Bypass or Highway 99.

That includes four years with six fatalities each — 2015, 2019, 2020, and 2022.

Roughly a third of those fatalities were bicyclists and pedestrians, including those struck by trains.

There was a train versus pedestrian death last week.

Before that, there were two traffic fatalities within three days in November.

A 40-year-old Manteca man died in a hit and run at night on Nov. 7 in the 1100 block of East Yosemite Avenue. The victim was apparently crossing the street between Powers and Mylnar avenues.

Three days prior,  a 40 year-old motorcyclist from Lathrop that witnesses said was driving at high rate of rate eastbound on Louise Avenue collided with a vehicle turning from westbound Louise Avenue onto southbound Hacienda Avenue. 

The motorcycle continued past the initial collision and collided into a light pole, which caused the light pole to fall down. The motorcycle rider was transported to a local hospital where he succumbed to his fatal injuries.

In August of last year, a 49 year-old Manteca man was struck and killed while crossing West Yosemite Avenue in front of the Kaiser Permanente Hospital in the 1700 block of West Yosemite also at night.

There was a third pedestrian death in 2024 but since it occurred on the 120 Bypass as it passes through the city limits, it is included in CHP statistics given the agency has jurisdiction on freeways and highways.

The third death  was a homeless individual who was crossing the 120 Bypass eastbound lanes east of the Main Street interchange on May 14 that was struck by multiple vehicles.

The May 14 incident brought the number of homeless people killed crossing the freeway near the interchange to two over a 38-month period.  The first was struck by a city garbage truck, also near the Main Street interchange.

A woman was critically injured in April of 2024 after being struck while crossing North Main Street at night.

The incident was in the 700 block of North Main Street between Edison and Jason streets  

The stretch of North Main Street between Jason and Edison streets is the deadliest area for pedestrians in Manteca.

 It is where a 55-year-old man was killed crossing the four-lane arterial in November of 2017 and a 67-year-old woman was killed in December of 2016.

There have been other car-pedestrian accidents on that stretch of North Main Street.

Included among those was a March 2019 accident when two teens were more than halfway across Main when they were struck by a northbound sedan traveling in the outside lane.

A bicyclist was killed almost a block to the south near Alameda Street.

In addition, there have been several traffic fatalities as well just north of Edison. There were solo accidents that speed was considered a contributing factor.

The road work now underway on North Main Street includes installing a median with fencing to prevent mid-block crossings by pedestrians.

A high profile crosswalk is being installed at Edison Street.

Other work includes ADA compliance improvement to sidewalks, adding bike lanes and resurfacing the pavement.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email swyatt@mantecabulletin.com