Over the last few years, e-bikes and other self-propelled vehicles have become popular means of transportation in New York State. However, these vehicles can pose major safety risks due to their high speeds and electrical components. Many people, especially children, ride e-bikes at dangerous speeds without wearing protective equipment or practicing bike safety, leading to severe or even fatal accidents.

In the Village of Maybrook, reckless juveniles have been riding their e-bikes on local streets, endangering themselves and others around them. The village board of trustees, during its August 24 meeting, discussed an introductory local law that would establish regulations for e-bikes and similar vehicles.

“E-bikes are becoming a problem throughout the state. I had some conversations with our chief of police about some problems I’ve been running into with kids riding their bikes around adults,” said Mayor Dennis Leahy. “Everybody knows that I try to be proactive rather than reactive, because we see a potential problem here.”

Village Attorney Elizabeth Cassidy drafted the local law based on other municipalities’ e-bike laws and New York State’s traffic and vehicle law. If approved, this law would require cyclists to wear protective equipment, obey the speed limit, and practice bike safety. The law would also prohibit class three e-bikes, which are only permitted in New York City; illegal modifications that increase speed or remove safety measures; and multiple passengers from riding a single bike. Cassidy noted that the law would enable the Maybrook Police Department to enforce these regulations on juveniles’ parents, as officers cannot ticket anyone under 16, and confiscate e-bikes if necessary.

“Some of this law is carried over from New York State law. This is not intended to override the New York State vehicle and traffic law, it’s intended to supplement,” Cassidy said. “There are provisions, so if you’re a parent watching your minor child pop wheelies down the street, and you’re sitting on the porch watching them do it, you can get the ticket because the chief and PD can’t give tickets to anyone under 16. They can also confiscate and impound vehicles.”

“Another thing we’re seeing is that a lot of people are illegally modifying e-bikes to increase speed and take off some of the safety measures, and those are specifically prohibited,” she continued. “Also, a lot of folks don’t realize that there are three types of e-bike, Type three is only authorized to be ridden in the city. A lot of people are buying type three bikes in the city and bringing them up here, and they are not permitted anywhere in the state other than New York City.”

Police Chief Dennis Barnett thanked Cassidy for putting the law together. He asserted that these new regulations would hold parents accountable for their children’s reckless biking. He added that the law needs to be passed sooner than later, as he does not want to see a child get into a fatal accident from riding an e-bike.

“Liz is probably the busiest person in this room, and she took the time to do this e-bike law for me. She did a little bit of research for me and found a law that was better than the ones I found from Middletown and Peekskill. She sent it to me, and we made some changes; the draft that you have before you is what we came up with,” Barnett said. “It allows us as a police department to enforce it. It also allows us to enforce it against the juveniles’ parents, which is a big problem around here.”

“I really don’t feel like having to deal with a fatal motor vehicle crash of a kid on an e-bike. I’ve handled 400 fatalities in the town, and I really don’t need 401,” he continued. “I’d rather do this law now and give us some teeth to get our juveniles back in line, and get the parents to make sure that their kids don’t ride these e-bikes on our roadways or sidewalks. It’s the same thing with the ATV law that we did before.”

Trustee Bill Giannico shared Chief Barnett’s sentiment, stressing that the law is long overdue. He described how children will ride their bikes in the village at night without lights or reflective clothing, creating major safety risks for themselves and drivers.

“I was coming down 208 the other night, right down here, and it was probably 9:30 p.m. It was dark, and there were two kids, they couldn’t have been more than 14 years old. One of them was on a pedal bicycle, and the other was on an e-bike. The kid on the pedal bicycle had his foot on a peg on the e-bike, so that the e-bike could tow him right down the middle of the lane,” Giannico said. “That’s prohibited, but they don’t care. They don’t have lights, they wear dark clothes, and they do it every night.”

The board scheduled a public hearing for the local law on September 21 at 7 p.m. During this session, residents will have the opportunity to provide feedback on the law and share their experiences with e-bikes and similar vehicles in the village.