Orange County Public Schools is pumping the brakes on micro-mobility devices on campus, banning elementary and middle school students from commuting by e-bike or e-scooter.
Under the new policy, only high school students with a valid driver's license or learner’s permit will be allowed to ride e-bikes and e-scooters to school. Those students must also follow a new set of rules: register their device to receive a district decal, ride safely, and dismount and walk the device once they enter school district property.
The policy comes as communities across Central Florida are tightening regulations around e-bikes and e-scooters. Deltona recently approved an ordinance prohibiting anyone under 18 from riding an e-bike, regardless of whether they have a driver’s license. Other cities are weighing new speed limits and safety requirements as the devices become more common.
Several community members spoke against the policy. They said the schools should teach the children to ride safely and that the e-bikes and e-scooters are the only way for some students to get to and from school.
School Board members said the new policy is intended to strike a balance between student independence and public safety, arguing that the district could no longer ignore the growing number of students riding the devices to and from school.
“We are to educate and to govern the education of our students, not direct traffic,” said Vicki-Elaine Felder, the District 5 School Board member.
Some board members acknowledged the change could create transportation challenges for families but said they believed the safety risks ultimately outweighed the inconvenience.
“These are split-second choices and decisions being made by thousands of students that don't have a permit, that don't have a license,” District 2 board member Maria Salamanca said. “I just cannot, in good conscience, vote to encourage these devices on our campus.”
Ashley LaChance told the board via video that the policy change is deeply personal. Her 13-year-old son, Colton Remsburg, a seventh grader at Innovation Middle School, died after a crash while riding an e-scooter in Lake Nona in May. She said she supports the district's new restrictions on e-bikes and e-scooters.
In her video, LaChance made a plea to ban micro-mobility devices.
“While there are kids who negligently ride e-scooters and e-bikes, and I know my child probably was one of them at one point in time. When the accident actually occurred, he was not riding negligently," LaChance said. "He was waved into traffic, and (that) ultimately was the kiss of death. I need you to understand that this reality is debilitating every single day in everything that I do."
At a recent Orange County Commission meeting, sheriff’s deputies played a video from May showing a large group of students leaving Windermere High School on e-bikes and e-scooters. The body camera footage captured several students riding against traffic and weaving through vehicles, and even going against traffic.
District staff also presented data from a December 2025 survey of 220 school principals. The survey found that about 11,800 students regularly used e-bikes or e-scooters to travel to and from school. Middle school students made up the largest share of those riders, accounting for 42% of the total.
Despite the data and videos presented by the district, not everyone was convinced the approach would make students safer.
Among those speaking against the policy was Nate Clark. His four children attend three OCPS schools in Baldwin Park, all within a mile of their home but each with a different start time. Clark told the board that without e-bikes and e-scooters, getting all of his children to school on time will become much more difficult.
“If this passes tonight, I don't know how they're getting to school in August,” Clark said.
Others questioned whether an outright ban is the right solution.
"A ban doesn't teach safety. It just relocates the risk," said Anna Strasshofer, marketing and events coordinator for Bike/Walk Central Florida. She pointed to school districts in Pinellas and St. Johns counties, saying they have responded to safety concerns with education and enforcement instead of prohibiting the devices altogether.
Some speakers urged the district to focus on safer riding habits rather than restricting who can ride. Mike Bustillos, with Orlando YIMBY, a nonprofit that advocates for housing and walkable communities, closed his remarks with a simple plea to board members: "Let the kids scoot. Let 'em scoot."
Board members acknowledged those concerns but said the district could not wait for state or local governments to act after a growing number of crashes involving students. They voted unanimously to implement the ban before the 2026-2027 school year.
They also said the policy will be reevaluated once Orange County adopts an ordinance regulating e-bikes and e-scooters, which could shape future changes.
