Should there be age restrictions on electric bikes/scooters?

Great Debates
41

I apologize for any confusion. The recent scooter statute is 625 ILCS 5/11-1518, if you care to look it up. I admit I have not made myself an expert about the legal status of e-devices, so I probably oughtn’t have posted an update.

As I understand it, the new state law precludes use of e-scooters by anyone under 16.

I don’t believe I posted that bikes or e-bikes were allowed on sidewalks. I believe I DID previously post that I perceived the recent proliferation of e-bikes on streets AND sidewalks was a problem that was not being addressed. But I have not carefully re-read the entire thread. I do not have a cite for the law, but I believe no one under 16 is permitted to ride a class 3 e-bike. And, as you say, the device in question was legally classified as a motorcycle. Yet, I have not seen the law enforced locally.

As I understand it (and again, I have not researched it) the state laws broadly make some devices illegal, but allows the possibility for municipalities to enact more generous laws within their jurisdiction. I think I read of some people concerned about adults using e-scooters on streets to commute. I believe my city is working on an ordinance to refine what is and is not permitted.

The intended thrust of my OP was that I perceived there to be a proliferation of e-devices used irresponsibly by children and that not enough was being done to address that. I’m glad to see that SOMETHING seems to be being done.

I also ran across a report that in our city over the past 2 weeks 2 kids riding e-scooters were involved in accidents with cars. In both incidents, the kid was determined to have been at fault. I’m unsure whether the kids and/or their parents were ticketed, or whether the police are still in an “education” stage. I feel sorry for the motorists who were involved.

Yeah. Very helpful. I was unaware. I’ll look into what the greatest generation had to say about electric scooters. And I’m sure great grandpa rocked a monowheel. :roll_eyes:

I have ZERO issue with adults riding e- or other bikes on streets and following the rules of the road. My anecdotal personal experience seems to be that e-bike users tend to be less respectful of the rules of the road. Perhaps it is because they can accelerate so quickly such that they can maneuver in ways no pedal bike can. Or perhaps they think that they are not really “motor vehicles” so the rules oughtn’t apply.

Twice I have had e-bikes pull next to me at a red light, such that they are on my left in the left turn lane. Both times they accelerated and pulled in front of me to continue in my direction - once on the red, and once as soon as the light turned green. In my 60 years as a bike rider and 48 years as a driver I never saw a pedal bike pull that kind of a maneuver. And those are just 2 examples of one particular type of behavior.

The more powerful e-bikes are treated as motorcycles in my state. Not sure how often it is enforced absent an accident, but you might want to ensure you are licensed and insured.

And please wear a helmet.

42

Okay, fair enough. Sometimes the laws refer to, for example, a Class L license being valid for mopeds between 50cc and 150cc, which is not directly translatable to nominal electrical watts. If they published an official table clarifying things, that would help. There are already regulations on the books, though. (And, in your recent story, the people did get a bunch of tickets.)

43

I understand and agree with your concerns. Technology is providing ever more capable powered vehicles to ever younger kids. While regulation and social expectations trail far behind.

With predictably sad results.

As a real motorcyclist I have done exactly that countless times. Splitting the lane on the car driver’s left or right. Which was completely legal in the jurisdictions I did it. Only proceeding on the green light though; never on a red.

As an e-bike rider I would / do do the same thing. But only on the right side of the rightmost left turn lane. To facilitate getting all the way over into the bike lane or gutter once established on the new street.


E-bikes, even ridden responsibly, are still neither fish nor fowl in the car/bicycle dichotomy. They are too fast and heavy to be safely ridden on sidewalks or in gutters. But are too slow to fully occupy a traffic lane on residential streets, much less (sub-) urban multi-lane thoroughfares.

Since nearly all newbie motorcyclists have experience riding bicycles, there’s often a tendency for newbie motorcyclists to “stay out of the way” by hugging the right side of the lane, or even the right side of the rightmost lane into the shoulder / gutter area where bicycles usually cruise. That’s real dangerous.

One of the things taught to newbie motorcyclists is that you have the same right to a complete lane as a car does. So ride well out in your lane so no car is tempted to try to share it with you.

The same is true of an e-bike (or very wimpy ICE motorscooter), but they aren’t speed-compatible or acceleration-compatible with car traffic.

As e-devices proliferate this situation will only get messier, with some e-riders operating as if they’ve got a fully capable motorcycle even though they don’t, and other e-riders operating as if they’ve got a human-powered bike or scooter even though they don’t.

Regulation is nice once it occurs, but compliance will be very long in forthcoming. It has to grow organically.

44

The e-scooters in particular have become the bane in the suburb that my practice is located. It seems that a fair number of parents consider them as toys appropriate for kids and don’t recognize how dangerous they are. And that it is illegal. Police have been starting with an education campaign and warnings but plan to ramp enforcement.

The low speed ones are now (as of last Fall) officially illegal under age 18, and are “only allowed if a unit of local government authorizes their use within its jurisdiction.”

E-bike rules are different.

Yeah education and enforcement of the laws is the current issue.

45

Separate about this. As a cyclist I am completely justified to fully occupy a lane and sometimes will specifically to prevent someone tightly brushing past me at high speed in the same lane.

46

There are at least 51 different jurisdictions on this in the US, and probably a lot more, since this is often handled at the city level. I don’t think that there’s any jurisdiction in the US where it’s true that “bicycles are always allowed on regular roads”: For instance, I don’t think they’re ever allowed on interstates. And there can be all sorts of different rules concerning bikes on sidewalks: Only below a certain speed, or only below a certain age, or required below a certain age, or sidewalk or street but they have to follow different laws, or whatever.

In at least some jurisdictions, this is also legally true of human-powered bicycles. But you’d be a fool to do so, because you’re guaranteed to generate a lot of road rage that way.

47

I believe what was meant by “regular roads” was not interstates or other limited access highways.

I’m certain there are no places where a five year old can’t ride their bike with training wheeels on the sidewalk.

48

I’m sure that no policeman is going to arrest a five-year-old for that, but there probably are places where the law as written is just “no bicycles on sidewalks”, with no listed exceptions.

49

I didn’t say that quite as completely as I should have. I have agreements with both of you.

Like @DSeid I too often position myself on my e-bike at bicycle speeds (or even at my pracctical max of 22pmh) to fully occupy the rightmost lane and thereby force a full passing maneuver into opposing traffic onto any car coming up behind me. I did the same thing on a purely human powered bike when I had one and will again if I ever get one again.

And like @Chronos, I recognize that that can be seen as a provocation.


My point was really that what a bicycle or e-bike physically cannot do is ride occupying a / the traffic lane of even a 25mph residential street and also keep up with the cars driving 30-ish there. It only gets worse on a 2-lane-each-way 35mph intermediate street or 3-lane-each-way 45mph boulevard.

No matter what course the rider takes, they will be generating traffic conflicts with cars coming from behind. The question is simply which conflicts the rider chooses to impose on the situation.

50

On most of the roads around here, the lanes are wide enough that there’s room for a bicyclist at the far right of the road, with a driver passing them at a safe distance, while still not crossing over the line into the next lane or into oncoming traffic.

On roads where that’s not true (which includes some which are officially designated as “bike-friendly”, which proves that the people making that designation have no clue what they’re talking about), I just avoid those roads entirely. Which I’m pretty sure makes some destinations completely unreachable by bike.

51

We have a lot of both kinds.

And for our many bridges there is no bike lane or shoulder at all. You simply have to block the entire right lane w your bike and do your best to power up the rise and back down as fast as possible to minimize the number of impatient assholes lined up behind you. There are often signs saying “Bikes use whole right lane” or some such, but that does little to placate our inherently impatient drivers.

52

As far as I know, lane splitting is not legal in IL. Tho it occurs occasionally, it is infrequent, and nowhere near what I experienced driving in CA.

Moreover, I recall lane splitting on expressways. Does it happen on streets with 1 or 2 lanes of traffic in either direction?

And this is something different. Say I am in the single lane heading south. There is a left turn lane to my left. The e-bike pulls up next to me, occupying the middle of the left turn lane. My sole assumption is that they are going to turn left. Instead, they swerve ahead of me.

In several decades of driving in IL, I’ve never had a motorcycle do a maneuver like that, or split lanes on a non-expressway. Yet I’ve experienced e-bikes doing it twice in less than a year. And that is only 1 specific example of recklessness. I’ve seen a group of 3-4 e-bikes (at least 1 looked like what I would call a minibike) come out of a driveway into a street, cross an intersection diagonally against the light, and continue on on the sidewalk. E-minibikes (looking like small motorcycles) riding the wrong way after dark with no lights. The list goes on.

53

Lane splitting can happen anywhere, but IME/IMO you’re right the main use case is to work through traffic jams on expressways. Here in Greater Miami metroblob we have lots of heavily trafficked boulevards of 2- or 3-lanes each way with traffic lights at ~1/2 mile intervals. It’s pretty common at red lights that motorcycles will lane split up to the front of the pack then sit between the lead cars while the light is red. Then zoom ahead on the green. Only to lather rinse repeat at the next red light. Much more likely on smaller motorcycles or sporty bikes than big heavy Harley-type cruisers. But some of them do it too when the splitting space is wide enough to accommodate their bulk..


I have seen cars make that maneuver. Drivers be gettin’ crazier every day.

But no, a left turn pocket is not a passing lane for any sane driver or rider. Including me.


As a general matter I’ll say that craziness in drivers/riders probably peaks around ages 14-18. These new e-machines that can be ridden by people not old enough to have a driver’s license and therefore not old enough to have real world driving experience are IMO particularly prone to being operated with all the care and forethought of a toddler.

Each kid will grow up, or be killed trying. Society will eventually decide just how many kids they’re willing to lose while having fun, and may reign these machines in. Or not.

Any video you’ve ever seen of driving in Indonesia or India or Kenya will quickly remind you that even will all this new-fangled e-craziness, the USA still has very orderly safe traffic compared to other societies that somehow get along despite their wacky levels of carnage.

54

That particular sort of recklessness happens with operators of all kinds of vehicles, in my experience.

55

I cannot deny your experiences. I have only experienced it with e-bikes.

And I think LSL really hit a point about age-related “craziness.” There is a reason young men’s insurance rates are higher. You can only accelerate so quickly on a pedal bike…