WINTER SPRINGS, Fla. – E-bikes can be fun and convenient, and they are more popular than ever. You don’t need a license, registration, or insurance, and anyone of any age can ride one in Florida.
Winter Springs Police Chief Matt Tracht tells News 6 kids as young as elementary school age, riding e-bikes across town, which are rated up to 28mph per state statute.
“Kids are really excited about having these e-bikes,” said Chief Tracht. “Kids are riding these things all over on the roads, on the sidewalks, in the parks, on the trail, and they’re having fun, but you need to have some common sense when you’re riding these things.”
Tracht said his department has started sharing information and resources for parents on social media, passing out pamphlets to kids, and even going directly to schools to speak to students about e-bikes.
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“Education is key, and if education doesn’t work anymore, then we start with the citations,” said Chief Tracht. “Since school started, we’ve stopped 45 kids on bicycles.”
The Winter Springs Police Department shared video with News 6 of a recent stop in Trotwood Park.
“What we’re seeing are kids in packs of e-bikes, ignoring the rules of the roadway,” said Tracht. “You have to stop at stop signs. You have to operate it like you’re operating a vehicle.”
Florida law permits e-bikes anywhere bicycles are allowed, including streets, highways, bicycle lanes, and paths. There are also different types of electric bicycles. Chief Tracht said it’s especially important for parents to know what they’re buying.
Electric bikes:
- Maximum speed is 20-28 mph, depending on class
- Contains pedals and a seat
- Motor does not exceed 750 watts
“A lot of these parents are buying these e-motor bikes that don’t have pedals that will go from 30 up to 70 miles an hour,” said Tracht. “Recently, we stopped a kid in the park that said, ‘Yep, I was just going 37 miles an hour.’”
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E-bikes that go over 28 mph and don’t have pedals are legally considered electric motorycles or E-Motos, according to police. Riders on electric motorcycles are required to have a registration and a license with a motorcycle endorsement.
“You know, parents are buying an electric bike. The kid’s saying it’s an electric bike,” explained Tracht. “And, they don’t know until we either stop them and we call a parent and say, ‘hey, your kid’s on an e-motorbike and they can’t be riding this.’”
Other E-bike rules:
- Class 1 E-bike: Bike with an electric motor that only engages while the rider is pedaling (pedal-assist or pedelec)
- Max assisted speed 20 mph
- Helmet required for riders under 16, recommended for all
- Class 2 E-bike: Bike with an electric motor that can be engaged at any time, with or without the rider pedaling
- Max assisted speed 20 mph
- Helmet required for riders under 16, recommended for all
- Class 3 E-bike: Bike with an electric motor that only engages while the rider is pedaling (pedal-assist or pedelec)
- Max assisted speed 28mph
- Helmet required for riders under 16, recommended for all
E-bikes have become so popular, sales are expected to exceed 6.4 million units by 2025. Researchers credit the expansion of the market to increased fuel prices and city traffic across the country.
The world is changing as people change the way they get from “A” to “B.” Our News 6 team visited Adventure Cycling, a bike shop off S.R. 434, where manager John Frame said e-bikes have changed business.
“We kind of knew it was coming because it started getting really big in Europe first,” said Frame. “But it really exploded around 2020 during the pandemic.”
Frame said it has introduced a whole new group of people to the cycling community.
“We’ve had a lot of people come in and buy e-bikes just for commuting to get to work,” said Frame.
Frame said the shop still does a lot of maintenance on regular bicycles, but they have seen an increase in the number of e-bikes they are working on day-to-day.
“It’s interesting because a lot of the E-bikes that are coming in here are not the ones that we necessarily sell,” said Frame. “The ones that you’re going to see in independent bike shops like this are going to be much higher quality than most of the e-bikes that you’re seeing out there. Most of the stuff that we see come in for service and stuff is something that someone got on Amazon for like $200, $300, $500 — super low quality. And that’s like most of the e-bikes out there. Sometimes borderline dangerous.”
Frame showed our News 6 team different models that range anywhere from 50 pounds to about 100 pounds. He said a lot of people have switched over to e-bikes.
“They’re everywhere you can find them,” said Frame. “Winter Springs, Oviedo, anywhere you can ride a bike, you’re going to find e-bikes.”