We have been seeing a lot of dangerous e-bike usage around town and we’ve also been receiving a lot of citizen complaints about them. People are concerned about children on e-bikes running stop signs and driving recklessly through neighborhoods. Some of these kids don't appear to even be paying attention to the stop signs, or, even worse, looking for oncoming traffic before entering or crossing an intersection.
Friends, the entire goal of this post is to prevent accidents before they happen. We do not want to see any children in our community needlessly struck while riding on them.
E-Bikes
To qualify as a low-speed electric bicycle under Illinois law, the bike must have:
Fully operable pedals
An electric motor of less than 750 watts
A maximum assisted speed of 20 mph (28 mph for Class 3)
Important reminders about operating e-bikes:
E-bikes CANNOT be ridden on public sidewalks.
You must be 16 or older to ride a Class 3 e-bike.
It is illegal to tamper with or modify the speed capability of an e-bike without a valid updated label.
E-bike riders must follow the same rules of the road that apply to traditional cyclists (including signaling, obeying stop signs, and lane usage).
No more than two e-bikes abreast on the roadway.
E-bikes operating at night must have a front lamp and a rear reflector.
E-Dirt Bikes
Electric dirt bikes do NOT meet Illinois’ legal definition of a low-speed electric bicycle because they typically have motors exceeding 750 watts and can reach speeds higher than 28 mph.
Operating an electric dirt bike requires:
A valid driver’s license
Registration with the Illinois Secretary of State
Compliance with insurance requirements
Electric dirt bikes cannot be ridden on sidewalks and can only be driven on streets if the driver has a valid license, proper registration and insurance for the dirt bike.
Regardless of the bike you’re on, please remember that you are required to stop for police when signaled to do so.
We hope this post prevents a child from being seriously hurt on an e-bike. Misuse of these bikes can pose serious risks to young riders and others. We strongly urge parents to do research prior to purchasing an e-bike for their children and remind their children about the rules of the road and what is/isn’t permitted e-bike usage. Anyone on an e-bike must abide by the same rules of the road as someone on a bicycle.
No bikes of any kind are allowed on playgrounds or ballfields at anytime!
𝙍𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙢𝙗𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨…𝙠𝙞𝙙𝙨 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙛𝙪𝙣, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙨𝙖𝙛𝙚𝙡𝙮. 𝙍𝙚𝙘𝙠𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙙𝙧𝙞𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙧 𝙧𝙞𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙥𝙪𝙩𝙨 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙖𝙩 𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙠!
Here are a few links to applicable laws and resources:
Illinois Law: https://ow.ly/FhUP50WkCq5 (scroll to the bottom of the page for Sec. 11-1517 – Low-speed electric bicycles)
Illinois Bicycle Rules of the Road: https://ow.ly/L57k50WkCnf
*Thank you to Chatham, IL Police for putting this post together