Residents and local elected officials across Orange County have been calling for tighter restrictions on e-bikes – something that many say are a threat to public safety.
The issue is especially prevalent in coastal towns and South County – where many residents have long said teenagers and other young riders endanger themselves and others when they recklessly ride e-bikes.
While more than half of the county’s cities have adopted some type of e-bike ordinances, a host of new state bills regulating e-bikes were recently signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The bills, pushed by local Assemblywomen Laurie Davies (R-Laguna Niguel) and Diane Dixon (R-Newport Beach), aim to prevent riders from buying products that modify the speed of e-bikes and require people to have a red reflector or light attached behind their vehicle.
Yorba Linda officials were the latest to crack down on unruly e-bike riders during, limiting e-bikes to 10 mph on equestrian trails and 25 mph on city streets.
Currently, many department stores and bike shops across the Golden State sell various models of e-bikes, ranging from different types that could reach different speeds depending on how the vehicle is modified.
The rise of personal motorized vehicles in the past few years – in this case, taking the form of a bicycle – has led leaders across Orange County to come up with various ways of managing what have come to be called e-bikes on county streets, boardwalks, and public trails.
This got the attention of OC Supervisors last year after a rise of complaints from residents about younger e-bike riders not obeying speed limits and increased accidents, leading to new county rules that codify speed limits and updated definitions for e-bikes in unincorporated areas around the county.
[Read: Orange County Supervisors Crack Down on E-Bikes]
Now, Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a few bills related to e-bike safety that were brought forth by two State Assemblymembers from Orange County.
New e-bike bills in California
AB 965, which prohibits the sale of class 3 e-bikes to people under the age of 16, was one of the recently signed bills authored by Assemblymember Diane Dixon (R-Newport Beach).
It was already illegal for people under 16 years old to ride a class 3 e-bike – a pedal-assisted bicycle that typically does not exceed 28 mph – under the California Vehicle Code.
“I’m not out to eliminate e-bikes, we just have to make them safe,” Dixon said in a phone interview, adding that her goal is not to punish e-bike riders for using city streets.
“We have to come at this in precise ways so we protect e-bikes while enhancing the safety of our roads,” Dixon said, noting that e-bikes are popular with both elderly and younger generations of riders.
Dixon also introduced AB 1744 last year, a bill geared toward prohibiting the sale of products or devices that modify the speed of e-bikes.
Last month, Gov. Newsom also signed two bills that were introduced by OC Assemblymember Davies (R-Laguna Niguel) to help address public safety concerns related to e-bikes.
One of the bills – AB 545 – prevents riders from increasing the speed of their e-bikes through smart phone apps.
“Unfortunately, this is something where we have great technology, but there’s no regulation on it,” Davies said in a phone interview, adding that modifications via smart devices are another way to potentially target younger individuals.
Davies introduced two separate bills: the other bill is to require e-bike riders to wear a red reflector or flashing red light to the back of their vehicle, referred to as AB 544.
The bill also requires minors who are cited for not wearing a helmet to attend a specialized e-bike safety course developed by California Highway Patrol.
She said that her main goal is to create “accountability” for e-bike riders and make riding e-bikes a safer experience for everyone on the road.
What are the rules for e-bikes in Orange County?
Under state law, no city is able to outright ban e-bikes or require a license to ride one.
For class 1 and class 2 e-bikes, it is already prohibited for people to exceed more than 20 mph while riding, while class 3 e-bikes are not to go more than 28 mph.
The California Vehicle Code also requires all bike riders under the age of 18 to wear a helmet.
Yet that hasn’t stopped more than half of OC cities from creating new definitions or local ordinances to establish new rules targeted toward e-bike riders.
Recently, La Palma also joined other OC cities in trying to crack down on e-bikes.
La Palma City Council members at the Aug. 5 council meeting unanimously voted in favor of banning e-bikes on sidewalks and other public facilities – like athletic fields, equestrian trails and recreational trails – along with a city speed limit of 28 mph for all e-bikes.
Similarly, La Habra also recently looked into creating new rules for e-bikes after seeing unanimous support from La Habra City Council in late June directing staff to draft a future e-bike ordinance.
Now, Yorba Linda City Council members became the latest officials to set new rules on e-bikes.
However, those same officials weren’t entirely on the same page.
On July 15, Yorba Linda City Council members were at odds on e-bike restrictions within city limits, with some officials calling for speed limits on roads and sidewalks, while others want e-bikes prohibited from all equestrian and dirt trails.
“We can put as many ordinances as we want, but at the end of the day, it’s about education and engagement,” said Yorba Linda Mayor Janice Lim at the July 15 meeting, highlighting that any future ordinance created is a working progress for city officials.
Some coastal cities in OC, like Laguna Beach and Seal Beach, have outright banned e-bikes from city boardwalks and sidewalks, while cities like Newport Beach and San Clemente don’t allow for riding on the sand.
Other places like Lake Forest, Orange, Laguna Niguel and Rancho Santa Margarita have broadly tried implementing speed limits while riding on sidewalks, typically not exceeding more than 5 mph.
Meanwhile, cities like Los Alamitos in North County further tightened their restrictions on e-bikes this year. E-bike Riders are not allowed to wear headphones or earbuds, and class 3 e-bikes are barred from using any sidewalk entirely.
But the different sets of rules across Orange County have already faced scrutiny.
The problem with regulating e-bikes
A 2024 OC Grand Jury report criticized the inconsistent ordinances that were implemented across various cities, making it confusing for law enforcement officers and residents.
[Read: Orange County Grand Jury Blasts Uncoordinated Regulation of E-Bikes]
Class 1 and class 2 e-bikes, the latter of the two being throttle assisted, are permitted across bikeways and trails across the county.
Some bicycle advocates argue the crack downs aren’t enough to deter unruly e-bike riders.
In the past, Bill Sellin – one of the directors for the OC Bicycle Coalition – said in a phone interview that class 2 e-bikes, which have a throttle attached to a motor, can easily exceed the maximum speed limit of 20 mph set by the California Vehicle Code.
Yet most state legislation and city ordinances tend to focus on class 3 e-bikes, an issue that further hampers the ability of local law enforcement to properly regulate unruly behavior, according to Sellin.
[Read: More E-bike Crackdowns Come to Orange County]
Despite the new rules for e-bikes, Dixon – the OC Assemblymember who authored two bills related to e-bikes – said she empathizes with local police departments, acknowledging the challenges in enforcing certain regulations across county roads.
“The way we’re coming up with these is very difficult for [police officers] to enforce,” Dixon said, adding it’s hard for patrol officers to discern between e-bike classes and knowing which riders need training.
This is something that police departments across Orange County have largely called out.
Capt. De Anne Wigginton, Yorba Linda’s police chief, highlighted to Yorba Linda officials in a July 15 council meeting numerous times about the difficulties in enforcing the rules of the road toward e-bikes.
She said that signage around town regulating “motorized vehicles” does not apply to e-bikes, since the California Vehicle Code defines all classes of e-bikes as bicycles.
“I agree with all of the signage and etiquette and education, but I can’t enforce that,” Wigginton said, adding that police officers already have issues with being able to identify the different classes of e-bikes while patrolling.
What’s Next for E-bikes in OC?
Currently, several school districts around the county – including the Irvine Unified School District, Huntington Beach Unified and Capistrano Unified – require training and registration of e-bikes for students riding to school.
Some cities like Irvine, Huntington Beach and Los Alamitos are leaving it up to their local police departments to deliver training for minors. Once e-bike training is completed, students receive a permit and sticker to show that the e-bike has been registered.
The Orange County Transport Authority created an E-bike Safety Plan that offers educational resources and tracks legislation and other trends being seen throughout the county. The transport authority did not respond to questions about the current outlook of e-bikes.
Dixon – one of the OC legislators responsible for California’s recent e-bike bills – said in a phone interview she’s going to continue working with local law enforcement on how best to approach future legislation.
She acknowledged that other classes of e-bikes, like class 2 e-bikes which have a motor attached, still have a ways to go before reaching the California State Assembly.
But she repeated a phrase several times over the phone to ensure her commitment to public safety.
“I’m not done yet when it comes to e-bikes.”
You can contact Hugo Rios at hugo.toni.rios@gmail.com or on Twitter @hugoriosss.