Orange County commissioners approved an ordinance Tuesday to regulate micromobility devices, like e-bikes and e-scooters.
RELATED: Orange commissioners set to consider approval of e-bike rules
The new rules include a helmet requirement for anyone under the age of 16. They also prohibit using micromobility devices for street takeovers or stunt driving, both of which could involve performing “wheelies.”
Orange County’s new rules also establish speed limits, based on where an e-bike or micromobility device is being used. For sidewalks, the maximum speed limit is 10 miles per hour. For roadways and shoulders, bike lanes and trails, the maximum speed limit is 20 mph — down from the 28 mph maximum originally included in the ordinance’s draft language.
District 2 Commissioner Michael Crabb welcomed the change. “The eight-miles-an-hour (difference) doesn't sound like a lot, but it's significant.”
Crabb said that, at 28 mph, a bicycle crash carries nearly twice as much kinetic energy than at 20 mph, making serious or potentially even life-threatening injuries — like internal organ damage and trauma to the brain — much more likely.
Frank Santini is a personal injury lawyer who handles some cases involving e-bike crashes. As he started seeing more and more such cases coming through his office, Santini told commissioners Tuesday, he became increasingly concerned about them — especially as a father himself.
Electric motorcycles, or e-motos, can often be confused for e-bikes, but they’re very different, Santini warned. “Unfortunately, the manufacturers are catching up, and now they're starting to put pedals on … their motorcycles, so that they can be sold as e-bikes, essentially.”
Orange County’s new ordinance creates a definition for e-motos, establishing that they are different from e-bikes and not subject to the same rules. E-motos have the capacity to go faster than e-bikes; some can reach speeds of 40 or 50 mph. In Orange County, e-motos are only allowed on roads — not sidewalks or bike trails — and must be properly licensed and registered with the state.
Commissioners voted unanimously to approve the e-bike rules. Safe mobility advocates with Bike/Walk Central Florida have said Orange County’s new rules could help guide other local jurisdictions — and the state of Florida — as they continue evaluating how to regulate e-bikes.
