I've seen numerous people using these scooters as their primary mode of transportation. On one hand it's sad to see but these people are getting a 'free' scooter and using it like a car. I'm sure they just go get a new free scooter after they beat their old one up.
Doing research on that topic - I interviewed several residents of a nursing home (not all elderly). A majority said they wished they had waited before surrendering their lives to their skooter dependancy. They were becoming more obese and helpless.
Interesting.