LOUISVILLE, Colorado. Colorado e-bike sales manager Perry Fletcher said his sales and repair shop has seen an increase in sales of bikes for students and families this fall as battery-powered bikes grow in popularity.
But kids' excitement about the new rides is tempered by the constant question from worried parents: Are they safe?
This question can be difficult to answer. The federal government's e-bike regulations are scant, and efforts to expand them have stalled, leaving states and even counties to fill the void with their own patchwork of rules. Meanwhile, the seemingly endless variety of e-bikes for sale vary in design, speed and quality.
In this environment, retailers like Fletcher are committed to educating consumers so they can make informed decisions.
“We are very careful about what comes into the store because there are dangers,” he said.
Federal regulations requiring battery safety standards e-bikes and other devices such as e-scooters are in limbo after the Consumer Product Safety Commission, an independent federal regulator charged with protecting people from death and injury related to bicycles and other consumer products. withdrew proposed rules in August.
The commission then sent the rules to the Office of Management and Budget's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs for review in response to President Donald Trump's February announcement. decree by demanding that independent agencies like CPSC be more aligned with White House priorities. In May, Trump fired three commission members appointed by his predecessor, former President Joe Biden.
Meanwhile, separate proposed rules commission to eliminate injuries caused by mechanical failures took a long time. Shira Rawlinson, director of communications for the CPSC, said it plans to update the status of both proposed rules.
As a result, e-bikes are subject to existing standards written for traditional bicycles, which the commission believes, based on its preliminary assessment, are insufficient to reduce the risk of injury on e-bikes. Colorado, MinnesotaAnd Utah laws have recently been passed to regulate the use of e-bikes to fill this gap.
The laws address issues such as the risk of battery fires and rider safety, and aim to distinguish low-speed e-bikes from faster e-motorcycles or electric motorcycles that can reach top speeds of 35 mph or higher. No federal law specifies the age at which you can ride an e-bike, but more than half of the states have an age limit for who can ride an e-bike. Bicycles 3rd classwhich top out at 28 mph, while two California counties recently set a minimum age for operating Class 2 bicycles with a top speed of 20 mph.
“The biggest problem is e-bikes, which go from being an electric bike to essentially being a motorized scooter,” said Democratic Rep. Leslie Smith, who co-sponsored the Colorado bill.
Colorado's e-bike law requires safety certification for lithium-ion batteries, which can explode if improperly manufactured or used. Between 2019 and 2023, they were responsible for 39 deaths and 181 injuries among people using micromobility devices such as e-bikes, according to the CPSC.
Most dealers, importers and distributors have agreed to use batteries that meet safety standards, but there will always be manufacturers who compromise safety to save money, said Ed Benjamin, chairman of the Lightweight Electric Vehicle Association, whose hundreds of members supply lightweight electric vehicles such as e-bikes or parts thereof.
“Some people don't care about doing it right. They just want to make the cheapest possible bike,” Benjamin said.
Amy Thompson, coordinator of the Boulder Valley School District's Safe Routes to School program, said education officials are scrambling to install more bike racks at several schools to accommodate the increase in e-bike use.
Students use them to quickly get to school or classes and to easily carry sports equipment or tools, Thompson said. She said she has seen some disturbing behavior, such as students riding threes on a bike, riding without helmets or trying to ride a bike, popularized on social media.
Thompson said kids are turning off the speed limiter on e-bikes to ride at higher speeds. “It’s very easy for kids to go on YouTube and find a video that will teach you how to bypass or disable the regulator on a bike,” she said.
Thompson warned parents monitor your children's e-bikes in September and described blurred lines between electric bikes and electric motorcycles last fall.
These blurry lines are confusing e-bike classification system adopted, in part or in full, by nearly all states that generally require e-bike motors to operate at 750 watts or lower. Class 1 e-bikes use pedal assist and must not exceed 20 mph; Class 2 e-bikes are equipped with a throttle and must not exceed 20 mph; and Class 3 e-bikes use pedal assist, which must not exceed 28 mph.
According to Smith, the Colorado lawmaker, some e-bikes easily switch between Class 2 and 3, sometimes without parents' knowledge. Last year, a California parent sued an e-bike maker, saying it falsely advertised a Class 2 e-bike that could upgrade to Class 3.
Class 2 e-bike dangers prompt California's Marin County ban children persons under 16 years of age from using them and require everyone who rides them to wear a helmet. Teenagers between the ages of 10 and 15 who are involved in an e-bike accident require emergency assistance. five times more expensive Other age groups have been involved in e-bike accidents, county health officials said. The growing number of serious injuries on e-bikes, especially among teenagers, is an emerging public safety concern, says the American College of Surgeons. said in June.
Talia Smith, Marin County Legislative Director, advocated California law this allows Marin County to impose age restrictions. But after hearing from a dozen other counties experiencing similar problems, she said state lawmakers should move to a statewide law, moving away from county-by-county piecemeal regulations. San Diego County bans riders under 12 years old from driving class 1 or 2 bicycles.
Vehicles claiming to be both e-bikes and e-motorcycles fall into the cracks between two regulatory bodies, the CPSC and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, said Matt Moore, general and policy counsel for PeopleForBikes, a trade association for bicycles, including e-bikes.
PeopleForBikes wants the Highway Safety Administration to stop shipments or take other legal action against e-motorcycles that are labeled as e-bikes and do not meet federal standards, Moore said.
If the federal government doesn't act, states should clarify their laws to define e-motorcycles as off-road dirt bikes or motor vehicles that require licenses, he said. In October California certain e-motorcycleswhich requires an identification plate issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles for off-road use.
In Boulder, the school district views communication and education as the cornerstones of safety, Thompson said. She said children and teens should learn and practice the rules of the road, whether they're driving two wheels with their own feet or using the gas.
“E-bikes are fun, environmentally friendly and relatively cheap. So how can we make them safer and more cost-effective for families?” Thompson said.
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