Diagnose the ‘e-bike’ problem to find the most effective remedy

The best way to identify the problem is to find out exactly what our youth are riding. To do that, I volunteered with Safe Routes to Schools in Marin, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties to count “bikes” at local schools. The results were published in the New York Times (“The E-Bike Dilemma,” Dec. 7, 2025) and by the Mineta Transportation Institute.

The good news: Most two-wheelers at our schools are still the old-fashioned, nonmotorized bicycles we rode as kids. The troubling reality, however, is that the large majority of motorized two-wheelers are throttle-activated devices that exceed the legal limits for e-bikes.

Put bluntly, most of the so-called “e-bikes” our youth are riding are not e-bikes at all. You can see this on the companies’ own websites. Oblivious to the law, many proudly advertise motors over 750 watts and top speeds above 20 mph — the legal limits for throttle-activated (Class 2) e-bikes.

Why does this matter? Because, unlike lawful e-bikes, these electric motorcycles are not street-legal without a driver’s license, registration and insurance. And with speeds of 30, 40 or even 50 mph depending on the brand, they are far more dangerous.

Unsurprisingly, many recent tragedies — including the Half Moon Bay fatality involving a high school student — have involved e-motos, not lawful e-bikes.

In other words, the so-called e-bike problem is largely an e-moto problem. Even the Mineta Institute study reached the same conclusion: Illegal, over-powered devices are the central issue.

Once we diagnose the problem correctly, the solution follows logically: Enforce the laws we already have.

It is already illegal for unlicensed individuals to operate unregistered vehicles. It is also unlawful for parents to allow unlicensed minors to operate them or otherwise endanger their safety.

Enforcing existing laws should be the first priority. Doing so would be the most meaningful tribute to the Half Moon Bay teenager who lost his life riding an illegal e-moto. Regulating lawful e-bikes would not have saved him.

Schools have a critical role to play in partnership with local law enforcement. We do not want police chasing kids through neighborhoods. But these vehicles congregate at middle and high schools five days a week, seven hours a day. That is where enforcement can be most effective and least disruptive.

In practice, it is difficult for school staff or officers to distinguish the few lawful throttle e-bikes from the far more numerous illegal e-motos. That is why it makes sense for campuses to prohibit any unlicensed, unregistered throttle-activated device, regardless of its label. Menlo Park and the Portola Valley school district have already adopted this approach, and others are considering it. Based on our experience across four Bay Area counties, it is the most effective policy. Students can still ride regular bicycles and pedal-assist Class 1 e-bikes to school.

There is also a critical consumer-protection angle. Companies that manufacture and sell e-motos as “e-bikes” are defrauding consumers. Yet state and local prosecutors have largely given them a pass, despite laws against fraud and false advertising. An investigation or enforcement action by a District Attorney or the state Attorney General could quickly stop these practices and secure refunds for families who were misled.

At the state level, lawmakers may also wish to consider eliminating throttle-activated e-bikes altogether and treating them as motorcycles, regardless of motor size or speed. Local ordinances — like the one proposed by Supervisors Speier and Mueller — can also help clarify where lawful e-bikes may be ridden.

But the immediate priority is clear: Focus on the real problem — the e-motos — and enforce the laws already on the books. A school-centered enforcement strategy is the fastest, most effective way to prevent further tragedies.

Bob Mittelstaedt is a retired S.F. trial lawyer, co-founder E-Bike Access, member Marin Water Citizen Advisory Committee on E-Bikes.