E-bike riders in Jacksonville will face new regulations if the city enacts legislation setting age restrictions for riding the electric-powered bikes and a maximum speed for them on sidewalks.
City Council member Michael Boylan began considering the legislation last fall and filed it after Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed legislation that would have put rules in place statewide.
Boylan said the city is experiencing a noticeable rise in e-bikes on city sidewalks and streets and that heightens the potential for dangerous collisions with motorists and pedestrians.
"We anticipate that's only to grow as the popularity of the bikes grows, both with youth and adults," he said.
During a joint meeting in April of the Jacksonville City Council and the Duval County
School Board that included a presentation on the district's "Be Safe. Be Seen" campaign, City Council member Raul Arias said Southside residents brought up concerns about e-bikes at a town hall meeting and School Board member April Carney said they've been an issue at the Beaches.
"We are the ones that have the highest amount of e-bike riders to schools and I can tell you that we've got kids that are riding on e-bikes with no helmets and staring at their phone, holding onto handlebars with one hand while flying through four-way intersections," Carney said.
The Beaches cities have their own regulations for e-bikes. Boylan's legislation would cover the rest of the county besides the town of Baldwin.
E-bike speed limit on sidewalks would be 10 miles per hour
The state legislation (SB 382) vetoed by DeSantis would have required e-bike operators to go no faster than 10 mph on sidewalks and in pedestrian-designated areas whenever the e-bikes are within 50 feet of a pedestrian.
In his June 25 veto message, DeSantis said complying with that regulation would be hard for e-bike operators to measure and would "inevitably be enforced with speed detectors and surveillance devices" that would "likely lead to enhanced surveillance by local governments against citizens."
The bill filed by Boylan (2026-570) would set a flat 10 mph speed limit for e-bikes on sidewalks regardless of the presence of pedestrians.
Age restrictions would apply to e-bikes in Jacksonville
No one under the age of 11 would be able to operate an e-bike on any bicycle lane, bike path, bikeway, right of way, roadway, sidewalk or other city-owned property in Jacksonville.
Operators and passengers of e-bike who are under the age of 16 would have to wear properly-fitted and securely attached bicycle helmets.
Violating e-bike regulations would bring fine up to $100
Violations would be a Class C offense in the city's municipal code. Class C offenses are civil infractions punishable by a fine up $100 and as much as six months in jail.
The bill would put some legal responsibility on parents and guardians of minor children by saying they cannot "authorize or knowingly permit" a child to violate the e-bike regulations.
Boylan said in addition to hearing from constituents about e-bikes, he personally witnessed a child riding an e-bike lose control and go off Brady Road in Mandarin. The child was wearing a helmet.
He also saw three youth doing wheelies while riding e-bikes on Orange Picker Road and another time he saw a youth on an e-bike traveling in the bicycle lane of San Jose Boulevard while holding a phone to his ear.
"It's like wow, don't they know how vulnerable they are putting themselves in those situations," Boylan said. "So really my interest is to remind parents and guardians of their responsibility" to make sure their children are operating the e-bikes in a safe way.
What's next for proposed Jacksonville e-bike regulations?
City Council will have a public hearing on the legislation during its Aug. 11 meeting. The bill then will go through City Council committee later this month and then a vote by the full council.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: E-bikes spin toward possible speed and age limits in Jacksonville
