Only adults will be able to operate some classes of electric bicycles and other motorized vehicles in Riverside going forward.
Riverside trustees on Thursday, Dec. 4, approved an ordinance defining and regulating the use of low-speed electric bicycles and scooters and low-speed gas bicycles, incorporating elements of state statute.
“[Village] Attorney [Robert] Pickrell did an amazing job of not only incorporating the Illinois Vehicle Code but incorporating it in such a way that, if there are any changes that are made at the state level, we don’t have to turn around and make additional updates to our village code, which we appreciate,” said Village Manager Jessica Frances.
The ordinance also bans the use of e-bikes and e-scooters on sidewalks due to safety concerns trustees and village staff expressed at a preliminary discussion of the issue in October.
“Even if a person is of age and can legitimately ride and operate one, under no circumstance should they be on the sidewalk,” Village President Doug Pollock said.
According to a memo from the meeting, different legal classes of e-bikes and other “low speed” vehicles will be broken into different age groups.
Class one e-bikes, with a motor that only aids a pedaling rider and stops propelling at a speed of 20 mph, and class two e-bikes, which have a motor that alone can move the bike up to 20 mph, will have no age requirement.
Those in class 3, which have motors that aid a pedaling rider up to 28 mph, will be limited to riders aged 16 and older, as will low-speed gas-driven bicycles, which have a gasoline powered motor that can propel the bike at up to 20 mph.
Electric scooters, both low-speed and high-speed, will be relegated to users 18-years-old and older. Low-speed e-scooters cannot exceed 10 mph with the use of a motor while those that are high-speed can reach up to 28 mph.
Frances said she asked Pickrell to look into lowering the age for e-scooters from 18 to 16 but that it could not be done.
Public Safety Director Matthew Buckley said the passage of the ordinance gives Riverside police a way to prevent issues that officials had been noticing in town related to teenagers riding electric bikes and scooters unsafely.
“It gives us the ability to educate, enforce, and, if necessary, adjudicate those that improperly ride these motorized devices. For us, the education part is the most important key component, but, if necessary, enforcement action can be taken,” Buckley said.
He further encouraged residents with children to pay close attention to the different definitions added to Riverside’s village code, which is viewable online, due to the new age restrictions.
“A lot of kids are going to be putting these types of devices on their Christmas lists, and we want them to make sure that whatever they do purchase, they’re going to be able to utilize properly,” he said.
“It may be some comfort to parents to know that, if we didn’t adopt this, then e-scooters would be banned outright in Riverside,” Pickrell added. “By adopting this, we’re allowing them, subject to certain regulations, so they can still buy those Christmas presents if they want to.”
In response to a question from Trustee Cristin Evans, Frances said village staff will work to put out infographics related to the new ordinance on Riverside’s website and social media profiles in addition to working with local school districts to ensure students know what they can and cannot use based on their ages.