Electric bicycles have become a common sight throughout California. They offer an affordable, environmentally friendly way to get around, and for many families, they’ve become a popular alternative to driving. But as e-bike use has increased, so have serious crashes involving children and teenagers.
That growing safety concern recently prompted the San Diego City Council to approve new local restrictions aimed at reducing youth injuries. Among other changes, the ordinance prohibits children under 12 from riding Class 1 and Class 2 electric bicycles on public roads and requires riders under 16 to wear helmets. First-time violations may be resolved through an educational safety course rather than a fine.
San Diego is hardly alone. Communities throughout California are reevaluating how young riders use electric bicycles as hospitals continue reporting more severe injuries and lawmakers look for ways to prevent them.
As a California bicycle accident attorney, I’ve seen firsthand how serious electric bicycle crashes can be when higher speeds, heavier bikes, and motor vehicles are involved. While education and enforcement may help reduce injuries, they can’t prevent every collision. When crashes do happen, families are often left facing difficult medical, financial, and legal questions and we are here to help.
Local governments aren’t adopting new regulations simply because electric bicycles have become more popular. They’re responding to the increase in serious injuries involving children.
A recent study estimated that, nationwide, there were more than 15,000 pediatric electric-bike injuries between 2019 and 2023. Nearly 80 percent of injured riders were boys, and more than 70 percent were adolescents between 13 and 18 years old. California has experienced similar trends. According to California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office, one San Diego trauma center reported a 300 percent increase in e-bike injuries involving riders younger than 18 between 2019 and 2023. Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, have likewise found that injuries involving electric bicycles nationwide nearly doubled each year between 2017 and 2022.
Many of these crashes involve children with little experience riding in traffic, operating bikes that can travel significantly faster than traditional pedal bikes. These bicycles accelerate quickly and weigh considerably more, increasing both stopping distances and the force involved in a collision.
California’s electric bicycle laws already impose important restrictions on certain types of vehicles. Class 3 models, which can provide motor assistance up to 28 miles per hour, may generally be operated only by riders at least 16 years old who wear helmets. California also distinguishes between these bikes and higher-speed motorized vehicles that may legally qualify as mopeds or motorcycles, requiring registration and licensing instead.
Unfortunately, not every rider or parent is familiar with those distinctions, and not every parent is making sure that their children are following the safety rules.
Understanding how these bicycles are classified can affect both rider safety and legal responsibility after a crash. As manufacturers continue introducing faster models and some owners modify their bikes to exceed legal speed limits, those issues have become even more important.
In a recent article, I discussed Amazon’s decision to restrict sales of certain high-speed electric bicycles to California customers after growing concerns about injury risks and state regulations. Those developments reflect a broader effort by lawmakers, retailers, and manufacturers to address safety before more people are seriously hurt.
Collisions involving electric bicycles often result in injuries that differ from those involving traditional bicycles. Studies have found that young riders injured in these crashes are more likely to suffer head, neck, facial, and internal injuries than riders on conventional bicycles. Speed plays a significant role, but so does the bicycle’s weight. An electric bicycle weighing 60 pounds or more carries substantially more momentum than a standard bicycle, increasing crash forces if the rider strikes a vehicle, another cyclist, a pedestrian, or the pavement.
