Not necessarily, but given the amount of drunk/oblivious/reckless operation of these vehicles around town, and the shortage of law enforcement to deal with the pimple-necked geeks riding these and other vehicles, such as skateboards, it’s not inappropriate.
The problem is, there are already strict laws/ordinances governing operating vehicles on the public throughways. And, yes under most state laws, these are indeed vehicles, and indeed, one can be cited like any other vehicle, including for driving while intoxicated, and all the rest. In many or even most states/municipalities.
Not really much to be done, IMHO. Just keep tossing the discarded implements of chaos in the river or quarry, I suppose.
We live right down the street from a middle school. I would wager less than 10% of the kids who bike to school wear helmets. So yeah, the parents clearly aren’t going to teach sense and safety.
I might go so far as to say there is marginal possibility for a kid under 14 to use such devices safely. Just too high-powered to be responsibly used by someone whose brai is so immature. But the prevalent opinion seems to be, “Gee, that looks like fun!”
And he probably would have done the same if he was riding a traditional bike. The problem isn’t the technology, it’s the assholes using the technology in selfish/stupid ways.
Yesterday and today I saw 3 new ones - little motorcycle-looking electric minibikes. Of course, being ridden on the sidewalks. No, this isn’t the end of civilization as we know it, but right around my neighborhood, the use of an increasingly varying range of such devices seems to be growing at a very rapid pace.
Sure, asshole kids have always caused problems, whether on bikes, roller skates, skateboards, bikes… So this is likely just today’s manifestation of the same thing. I’m just a tad surprised at how quickly use of these devices seems to be growing. Will be interesting to se if there is any meaningful reporting of any increase in injuries.
Around here on city streets ISTM like 90% are electric. You can also rent various e-scooters and bikes via apps. It makes sense, though: not everybody wants to show up at work needing a shower and a change of clothes. And a big chopper is a bit too much for a commute. None of that applies to little kids, and I have not noticed that many, certainly not weaving through rush-hour traffic. To the extent that there is a problem, I am not convinced they factor into it.
Here’s one I just saw. Adult male - presumably father - rides electric scooter down residential street wearing flipflops, no helmet. Stops to pick up middle school aged daughter. Giver her helmet which she puts on. Father straps child’s backpack to his back. Girl stands on scooter in front of man, and they zip off.
I was not the “safest” dad when my kids were young, but even I would’ve thought that awfully risky. Hard to imagine that is legal.
Heh. When my kids were little they were required to wear a helmet for bicycling. To this day, though, I have never worn a helmet for bicycling/horseback riding/etc. I’ve never owned one and would feel foolish wearing one.
Adult seats in cars don’t provide nearly the collision protection that infant and toddler seats do for kids. And yet we accept that as normal.
A helmet only on the little kid makes complete sense to me and is IMO better than the other way around.
Two folks on one scooter is also tres ordinaire. I’d much rather have 35yo Dad driving the scooter than 16yo older brother in that circumstance. In fact it’s probably safer than Dad on one scooter and daughter on another. For sure it would be if the daughter was more like 6 than 12.
The real safety decision came when he/they decided to commute home from school on a scooter, not an SUV. Or further upstream when they bought the scooter.
I wonder if we are in a time where usage has outpaced regulation. nd then, of course, if there are laws, will they be enforced.
From the size of this kid, I am sure she is supposed to be in a car seat in a car. And IMO it takes a special brand of stupid to ride a motorized vehicle in flipflops.
Driving home on a busy road today, 3 bikes were crossing, cutting it close. The one on the ebike was by far the most aggressive. Yeah, there are a bunch of yahoos out there having fun with their toys. But I would favor greater regulation if, for no other reason than to make clearer liability/negligence/responsibility when their scooter/ebike gets into an argument with a car.
Not the same, but we have a plague of ATVSs buzzing around on the streets here as well as the zippy little bikes and scooters being discussed. The main problem the cops have in enforcing the laws as regards these folks is catching them. Cars are no good, for example. So what do you do?
I’ve exchanged a few emails with my alder over the past couple of years. At first they were “looking into it,” and “waiting for the state (IL) to act.” Apparently IL passed some kind of law which gave cities the right to regulate such devices.
Over the past month. we’ve gotten repeated notices in the mail stating that e-scooters are illegal for persons of any age on streets/sidewalks, or paths. E-bikes are divided into classes, and no one under 16 can operate a class 3 (the most powerful) e-bike.
I was dubious about enforcement, as I still see them all over. But apparently earlier this week a 14-yr-old boy was riding a Talaria XXX electric motorcycle on the sidewalk of one of our main shopping streets, and hit and injured a woman exiting a business. Check the bike out..
Our suburb is surrounded by other suburbs. Not at all rural where folk drive 4-wheelers and dirt bikes through fields and along quiet roads. Sure, the motorbike woulda been fun when I was younger. But what goes through a parent’s mind, buying such a thing for their 14-year old and thinking it is appropriate for the kid to ride anywhere on city streets or sidewalks?
Apparently both the kid and parent were ticketed, the kid for Operating a Motor Vehicle on Sidewalk, No Valid Drivers License, No Registration, and Operating an Uninsured Motor Vehicle. The father was charged with Permitting an Unlicensed Driver to Operate a Motor Vehicle. Both have pending court dates.
Earlier this year I passed a car stopped in an intersection with an e-scooter under the front tire. I have no facts as to who was at fault - but I do have suspicions. No driver ought to have to bear the guilt of hitting some kid zipping along on these things.
I hope I hear of more such enforcement and the offenders get more than a slap on the wrist.
I do not really follow what you are saying here. Bicycles, motorized or not, are always allowed on regular roads, while even pedal bikes are not allowed on the sidewalk.
To legally ride a 6000W “electric motorcycle” on the road you will need at least a valid “motor-driven cycle” license (min. 16 years old in Illinois), class L (or M) in this case, registration and insurance of course required.
Pretty sure Illinois has had laws regulating motor vehicles since at least WW2.
I think the point is that there are newly invented machines that are becoming popular with kids, have significant performance, and that fall beneath / outside of traditional state-level regulations on motor vehicle licensing & operations. And / or are being widely operated in unwitting or uncaring violation of those laws.
It seems the OP wants to regulate those. And to establish some sort of social compact on what’s acceptable use for them.
We’ve finally gotten a lot of places that have walking trails and separate biking trails. What we may really need now are yet a third set of isolated travel paths for the e-machines that are too fast/maneuverable to play well with human-powered bikes, but are not really compatible with car traffic either.
As an e-bike rider myself I often find myself weaving between the car traffic lane to pass bicyclists or back into the bicycle lane to avoid being hit by passing cars. Add in youthful indiscretion, even higher-performance vehicles, no personal protective gear, and that’s a recipe for tragedy & expense.
Good luck seeing that third path before the year 2125.
Truth be told, I do not know what state laws apply to my specific e-bike. I don’t know if I should have liability insurance or a vehicle license or operator’s license. Heck, I don’t know whether my existing liability coverage extends to me operating the darn thing. Would suck to run over some little old lady and severely injure or kill her then discover that legally speaking I’m an uninsured and maybe unlicensed motorist. I’m pretty sure I’m far from alone in my ignorance.
Time for me to do some homework. Be nice if everyone else did too.
