ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – On Tuesday, St. Johns County commissioners will revisit a proposed e-bike safety ordinance after several local crashes.
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One woman said she sees the problems the e-bikes are causing firsthand when she walks and knows something needs to be done.
But she doesn’t want the county to implement anything too strict that will take the fun away from children.
Sunday afternoon, three children were riding their e-bikes on the sidewalks in a shopping plaza.
There was a sign that said “No motorized vehicles or e-bikes or scooters.”
Colin Lytle, who lives in St. Johns County, said he’s seen a huge rise in the e-bikes. He didn’t realize how popular they were in the area until he came home from college a year ago on a break.
Since then, every time he’s in his parents’ neighborhood, he sees them fly by.
While there are some signs about e-bikes in St. Johns County, they’re not there throughout the whole county.
That’s why this Tuesday, county officials are expected to talk about the latest draft of a proposed ordinance.
It would require anyone under 18 years old to wear a helmet while riding a motorized device.
Anyone under 14 would be prohibited from operating any e-bike, motorcycle, or electric motorized device. This wasn’t in the previous proposed draft.
It will also prohibit any motorized device on a county sidewalk or road at a speed of more than 10 mph.
These proposed rules come after multiple e-bike crashes in the last few months, including a 12-year-old boy who was in critical condition after a crash in Julington Creek Plantation.
A woman named Barbie said e-bike safety is needed but she’s on the fence about how to implement it.
“I’m not someone who typically is big about having a whole bunch of rules, so typically I want kids to be kids so I don’t know how to manage the whole thing, so I don’t know how this is going to go on Tuesday,” she said.
While Lytle said any rules that make the area safer is something that he’s for.
“I trust the county to have both the kids and the adults’ best interests at hand,” Lytle said.
The meeting will happen on Tuesday at 9 a.m.
