Editorial: E-Bikes Eek!

Del Mar’s E-bike situation is out of control. Replace Del Mar with any other city, and you realize we have a California-wide challenge.

Sales of electric-powered bicycles (E-bikes) and motorcycles (E-motos) have exploded in recent years. The number sold last year in the US exceeded the number of electric cars sold. Regulations governing their use have not kept pace, but recent deadly incidents involving teen riders have made it even more apparent that we need to take E-bike safety seriously.

An 81-year-old Orange County Vietnam veteran died after being struck by a 14-year-old riding an E-moto that was not street-legal, and that required the rider to be at least 16 years old. His mother, who had previously been warned that this E-moto was illegal, has been indicted for manslaughter. She purchased the E-moto when her son was just 13 years old. She apparently did not know (or care) that state laws limit those under 16 to the use of class 1 (pedal-assist, no throttle) or class 2 (throttle, pedal-assist optional) E-bikes with 20 mph top speed and 750 watts maximum power. E-motos are for off-road use only, unless they are registered and licensed for on-road use, and their rider is 16 or over. Every parent of a teen E-bike rider should know and abide by these rules. The E-moto involved in the Orange County accident had a top speed of 56 mph and an electric motor power of 21 kilowatts (28X the legal limit!).

Those of us who walk the Del Mar streets know that teens riding E-bikes are speeding around with little regard for pedestrians. We don’t know how many of these E-bikes are legal, though it is safe to assume many exceed 20 mph. There are several state bills under consideration that would increase the regulation of E-bikes, including AB 1557, which would lower the maximum speed of class 1 and 2 E-bikes to 16 mph, and SB 1167 by our Senator Blakespear, which would require E-bike manufacturers to properly label their products with class and maximum speed. It is already illegal to sell applications that modify E-bikes to exceed speed limits. Amazon has agreed in the last few days to stop selling E-bikes with performance that exceeds state regulations.

Del Mar has passed some E-bike regulations. One prohibits riding E-bikes on sidewalks. That seems to have had little impact on where you might have to dodge an E-bike. Enforcing regulations on teen riders may be challenging, but adults who ignore traffic regulations while riding regular bicycles (STOP sign; what STOP sign) have ceded any moral authority to comment on teen behavior. Nonetheless, holding parents responsible for the safe use of the E-bike they purchased for their teenager, as in the Orange County accident, is an important precedent to follow.