By
Braden Clark
Utah
State University could be the next institution to ban hoverboards, following a
meeting involving campus safety, risk management, police, student services and
housing officials about the popular two-wheeled device.
“We
want to insure student safety, and the safety concerns from the hoverboards are
high,” said Tim Vitale, the executive director of public relations and marketing
at Utah State University.
Among
other concerns, the batteries on some hoverboards have been known to catch fire
due to the poor quality of the rechargeable lithium-ion batteries in some of
the vehicles.
As
of yet, a new policy for the vehicles has not been officially agreed upon, and
there hasn’t been a date set to when exactly the decision will be made, but
some Aggie hoverboard owners are worried their money will be wasted.
“I
think it’s stupid, because the more expensive ones don’t explode,” said Braxton
Moon, a Utah State student and hoverboard owner. “Are they going to put sanctions
on the cheaper ones?”
Moon
defended his choice of on-campus transportation as “different from a longboard
or a bike, because it’s slower and a better form of commuting.”
Hoverboards
were one of the most sought after items this last holiday break, and the recent
boom of Facebook videos, Tweets and Vines show the popularity of the device is
increasing. But the fire concerns have prompted several Utah universities to
issue bans.
A
similar meeting to the one recently conducted at Utah State was held at
Southern Utah University, which then restricted the use of hoverboards from all
main campus buildings on Dec. 28.
Southern
Utah University’s policy banned hoverboards from campus “until safety standards
for them can be developed and implemented.”
Students
have taken to Twitter to argue for the right to ride with trending hashtags
like #LetMeBoard and #HoverboardBan.
But
Ellen Treanor, the director of marketing and communication at Southern Utah,
noted the policy might be temporary.
“It’s
important for students to realize this isn’t a permanent ban, and frankly it
isn’t a ban at all, but a restriction,” Treanor said. “We are doing this
because we are looking out for the safety of our students, and because the
hoverboard has been known to catch fire and cause injuries we had to put some
restrictions on the device.”
Dixie
State University has banned the use of the hoverboard from all campus
buildings, and will include student housing in the future.
“The
temporary ban will be in place until safety standards improve, specifically
when manufacturers of various brands of hoverboards receive approval from
national certification boards and the National Fire Protection Association
makes recommendations and sets standards,” said Jyll Hall, the director of
public relations and marketing at Dixie State.
Dixie
State has continued to allow the vehicles to be ridden on campus as a mode of
transportation, Hall said, but she noted recreational use was forbidden.
