Law enforcement officials throughout Ventura County are concerned about an uptick in traffic violations involving electric bicycles and electric motorcycles.
“We’ve got a video of one kid doing wheelies on the 101 freeway on an e-bike that doesn’t go faster than 25 or 30 mph,” said Cpl. David Curtis of the Ventura Police Department’s traffic unit. “If that’s not a recipe for a disaster, I don’t know what is.”
Under state law, e-bikes aren’t allowed on freeways. Curtis said that’s one example of violations that vary from riding on the wrong side of the road to failing to stop for a signal.
Throughout the county, authorities say some riders on electric cycles have failed to follow the rules of the road, endangering themselves and others. Additionally, police have impounded vehicles that aren’t street legal, such as off-road electric motorcycles.
Of last year’s collisions between motorized vehicles and e-bikes or traditional bicycles in Simi Valley, 80% were caused by bicyclists not following rules, said Cmdr. Ritchie Lew, traffic bureau commander with the Simi Valley Police Department.
In Ventura, Curtis said, bicyclists are at fault in most collisions involving other vehicles.
He and officers from other police departments are trying to curb the growing number of violations by educating parents and riders about e-bikes. They say both kids and adults are breaking rules.
Violations have involved three categories of electric cycles: e-bikes, off-road e-motorcycles and street-legal e-motorcycles, which must be registered with the California Department of Motor Vehicles.
The Ventura Police Department reported getting 200 calls about e-bikes during the last six months. Complaints ranged from speeding to accidents and near misses.
In Thousand Oaks, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office, which is contracted for police services, has received about 100 calls this year related to kids riding e-bikes and electric dirt bikes, said Deputy Ethan Battle, who’s with the city’s traffic bureau.
The number of Thousand Oaks collisions involving e-bikes or traditional bicycles is on the rise this year. The figure jumped from 10 in 2023 to 21 so far in 2024, Battle said.
“We had one significant collision last year in Thousand Oaks involving three juveniles on one electric (off-road) motorcycle,” he said.
Police said off-road and street-legal e-motorcycles, none of which are allowed on trails in areas managed by the Conejo Open Space Conservation Agency, can pose a hazard for hikers and damage trails and the environment. Gasoline-powered motorcycles are also prohibited on trails.
Lew said the Simi Valley Police Department received eight calls this year about e-bikes and electric dirt bikes. Complaints include riders going too fast, failing to stop completely at a traffic light or riding on a sidewalk, the commander said.
Simi Valley police have seen an increase in people riding Sur-Ron off-road e-motorcycles, for example, which are not street legal on public roads or public property, Lew said.
“Officers stop them and warn them,” he said. “Sometimes we impound their motorcycles.”
Electric motorcycles, including the off-road brands, are designed to go up to 45 mph, but sometimes riders modify them to go 80 mph, officers said.
Sur-Ron, Talaria, Beta Explorer and similar makes of electric dirt bikes aren’t electric bicycles and aren’t street legal, according to the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office.
Some brands of e-motorcycles, such as Zero Motorcycles, meet the requirements of being street legal for licensed riders, said Sgt. Mark Knackstedt of the Ventura Police Department’s traffic unit.
Street-legal status is based on whether the motorcycle has safety features such as turn signals, a headlight, a tail light and a brake light, Knackstedt said. Riders must have a license plate, a lamp to illuminate the plate, registration and insurance, he said.
What’s the difference between e-bikes and e-motorcycles?
Parents have bought electric motorcycles for their children because they think they’re e-bikes, authorities said, but one difference is you can’t pedal a motorcycle.
The California vehicle code defines e-bikes as a bicycle “with fully operable pedals and an electric motor of less than 750 watts.”
What are the classes of e-bikes?
The law puts e-bikes into three classes. Riders of all ages can ride class 1 and class 2 e-bikes, neither of which may exceed 20 mph. Class 1 bikes have a motor that works only when the rider is pedaling. Class 2 bikes don’t require pedaling.
A class 3 e-bike can only be operated by riders 16 and older. Under state law, the bike can only work when the rider is pedaling and can’t exceed 28 mph.
Riders 17 and younger must wear helmets. With class 3 e-bikes, all riders must wear helmets regardless of age.
State law doesn’t allow riders to modify e-bikes to make them go faster.
Cycling through education
In Oxnard, enforcement and information on social media have led to a drop in complaints about e-bikes and e-motorcycles, said Oxnard Police Department Traffic Sgt. Mike Gens.
Oxnard police hosted a question-and-answer session in May on YouTube. Simi Valley police recently sent out information that the Simi Valley Unified School District passed on to parents. Ventura police and the sheriff’s office have held workshops and issued news releases on the topic.
To learn more about e-bikes, go to cityofventura.ca.gov/ebikes.
Dave Mason covers East County for the Ventura County Star. He can be reached atdave.mason@vcstar.com or 805-437-0232.
