Ebikes and Bike Lanes

In the broader context of the Great Disaster that is the United States, this issue might not seem very important. But for those of us who feel the need to work through policy issues in the hope that someday, in some vague future, such things might matter again, this stuff is kind of important. In this case, it’s the question about e-bikes and bike lanes. In short, while I have nothing at all against e-bikes, they are a very different kind of vehicle than a regular bike and that’s especially true for kids just getting on the street with their bikes. Do e-bikes belong in bike lanes?

As a lifelong urban cyclist who’s been battling San Francisco’s hills for five years now, biking is one of my favorite pastimes. According to SFMTA, 29% of San Franciscans bike (or roll) every week — including 10% who use these modes of transportation every day. I encourage and support anyone’s decision to ditch their car and join the 3.4% of San Franciscans who commute via bike (the highest percentage in the country!). And the city’s doing its damndest to recruit new cyclists as well, increasing the number of bike lanes by 50% over the past 15 years, and rolling out an ambitious 20-year roadmap to expand the city’s bike infrastructure. The plan is brimming with ideas but fails to address my biggest gripe with the state of cycling in SF today: e-bike riders.

Over the past couple of years, our city’s cycling community has started to look markedly different. The bike lanes have become clogged with a glut of electric two-wheeled vehicles that cost the equivalent of a month of rent for a San Francisco one-bedroom apartment. Whereas I feel an immediate camaraderie with most other cyclists over the shared burden of traversing our nightmarishly hilly city using just the power of our thighs, I have no kinship with many of these double-wide speed demons with electricity coursing through their chains. As far as I’m concerned, bikes that aren’t powered by your legs are completely different beasts, often ridden with a savage lack of etiquette or decorum. In fact, we’ve long had a word for these types of motorized two-wheeled vehicles: “motorcycles.” And like their gas-powered cousins, I believe most e-motorcycles should not be allowed in the bike lanes.

And I’m not alone. There’s already some legal movement in this direction, specifically regarding class 3 e-bikes (whose motors have a top speed of 28 mph). Chicago doesn’t allow class 3 e-bikes in bike lanes, nor does Eugene, Oregon. (There’s also a proposal to make the law statewide in Oregon.) New York state is considering treating class 3 bikes that weigh over 100 pounds like mopeds, requiring a license and banning them from bike lanes. In California, class 3 e-bikes are allowed in city bike lanes but aren’t allowed on bike paths and trails. Meanwhile, European countries haven’t made many bike lane restrictions but generally cap speeds at 15 mph rather than the American standards of 20 mph (for classes 1 and 2) and 28 mph (for class 3). I don’t think we need to limit the speeds of e-bikes at all — we just need to restrict where e-bikers can ride.

This seems reasonable to me. But urbanism issues always spark an interesting discussion and perhaps this will as well.