E-scooters have been banned in a UK county after a two year trial before "someone is seriously hurt."
It follows a 12-month pilot scheme in the area which was launched in November 2020 and extended twice, despite public safety fears and a pensioner being knocked down.
Sarah Carter, 80, suffered a broken wrist, cracked jaw and broken cheekbone after she was struck by an e-scooter being ridden on a pavement in July.
The retired university librarian said: "Another elderly person could have quite easily been even more seriously injured or even killed."
A spokesperson for Bird, the firm that operates the scooters, said the young man riding the scooter was immediately identified and blocked from using the service.
Kent County Council has rejected an offer to extend its e-scooter trial following the incident in the city of Canterbury.
The Department for Transport offered to continue the trial beyond its current end date of November 30 this year, until May 2024.
Instead, it will be scaled back ahead of the current end date, with the number of e-scooters and designated routes reduced.
Cllr David Brazier, Kent County Council's cabinet member for transport overseeing the trial, said: "As we were nearing the end of the trial, I decided to truncate it before someone was seriously hurt.
"Recently an elderly lady was quite seriously injured by one being ridden on a pedestrian area which was not allowed.
"I tended to favour the trial going on, but it was quite obvious now accidents could have been worse than they were."
Cllr Brazier told county councillors at a cross-party committee that e-scooter users had been riding routes not permitted by the official pilot, which is operated by Bird.
He said: "You cannot legislate against people who will agree to use something in a certain way and then suit themselves."
It means from December 1 there will be no means to legally ride e-scooters on Kent's streets, as they are only permitted on public highways as part of Government-approved trials.
According to The Department of Transport, in 2021 there were 1,280 collisions involving e-scooters across the UK.
These incidents caused 1,359 casualties and nine deaths.
It is understood the Canterbury pilot could now be reduced to a single route before November 30.
Cllr Brazier told Thursday's meeting: "The agreement reached by officers was the area of operation should immediately be limited to the corridor between the university and the city centre.
"I believe that further reductions have taken place since then."
A spokesperson for Kent County Council said: "In recent months, Bird, working to deliver this trial for Kent County Council, has introduced enhanced safety measures including a reduction of the electric scooter speeds from 15mph to 12mph.
"Additionally, they increased Birdwatchers to patrol the city for pavement riding and changed their rider policy to introduce an immediate ban for any misdemeanour.
"Kent County Council has decided to gradually reduce the number of vehicles in the trial, as well as the areas in which they operate, ahead of the trial finishing in Kent at the end of November."
Operator Bird launched the trial initially for students to travel between Canterbury's universities and the city centre, where air pollution exceeds three World Health Organisation limits, according to Imperial University's Air Quality Report.
The trial zone was later increased and opened to all eligible riders in March last year, when it was extended for a second time.
Opinion on the scheme has been split, with supporters saying it cuts pollution, and others arguing the scooters are dangerous to pedestrians.
A spokesperson for Bird says the firm is "clearly very disappointed with this decision.
"At Bird we pride ourselves on always being at the forefront of enhanced safety and innovation, whether that be through our industry-leading vehicles and technology, safety events and parking patrols organised in close collaboration with the city, the police and our partners.
"We have an incredibly low incident rate of 0.0014 per cent out of almost 67,000 rides since we launched in 2020, and one in five eligible Canterbury riders have used our vehicles, opting for sustainable travel and ditching petrol-powered trips.
"We will continue to provide our eco-friendly and convenient vehicles for Canterbury residents until the end of November."
While there have been many complaints, Cllr Brazier described Bird as "competent and professional people" who have "taken many steps to ensure the safety of their contractors and the public at large".
Data from the trial will be passed to the Department of Transport, along with that from 29 other government-approved trials.
When all the pilots end in May 2024, the government is expected to make a decision on whether or not to approve the use of e-scooters on public highways in the UK.
