Glendale City Council members voted for a new city ordinance regarding e-bikes and e-scooters at its Dec. 9 meeting. Police begin enforcing the ordinance Jan. 9.
Gilbert leaders are considering a sweeping new ordinance aimed at regulating e-bikes and related devices as town officials report rising crashes, injuries and increasingly reckless riding behavior involving juveniles.
During a recent study session, Gilbert Police and town staff outlined proposed rules that would create age restrictions, speed limits, helmet requirements and penalties tied to reckless riding, fleeing police and riding under the influence.
Assistant Police Chief Mike Angstead said the town has seen growing public concern as e-bikes, electric motorcycles and similar devices become more common throughout Gilbert.
“We're seeing more and more of this,” Angstead said after showing video footage of large groups of riders taking over roadways. “We're seeing a rise in organized e-bike and e-motorcycle ride-outs and it's marked by reckless riding on the public roadways, dangerous behavior, certainly lots of incidents of these primarily kids and young adults fleeing from police during traffic stops.”
Town officials said collisions involving adult and juvenile bicyclists have risen sharply in recent years, with 2026 data trending similarly.
The proposed ordinance would cover bicycles, e-bikes, scooters, motorized skateboards and similar devices. Among the recommendations is a 15 mph speed limit on sidewalks, town parks and multiuse paths.
The ordinance also would prohibit riders younger than 12 from operating class 1 or class 2 e-bikes and similar devices, while riders younger than 16 would be barred from using faster class 3 e-bikes.
Engstead said the proposed age thresholds were designed to avoid restricting youths who are already riding responsibly.
“What we're trying not to do is make the age so high that it's restrictive of kids that are obeying the law and it's a safe way to get to and from school if you live near school,” he said.
Helmet requirements remain one of the council’s biggest decision points. Staff presented two options: requiring helmets for all bicycle and e-bike riders younger than 18, or limiting the requirement to only e-bikes and similar electronic devices.
Councilmember Yung Koprowski said she supported including traditional bicycles in the helmet requirement.
“I would be supportive of the helmet ordinance with the e-bikes including bicyclists,” she said.
The proposed ordinance also would create new reckless riding violations. Examples listed by police included doing wheelies in roadways, carrying passengers on single-rider devices, swerving intentionally and modifying bikes to increase their speed.
“A lot of our youth have figured out how to hack the battery and make it go actually a lot faster than it was ever designed to,” Angstead said.
Another proposed change would make fleeing from officers on bicycles or e-bikes a misdemeanor offense under town code. Police officials said enforcement has become increasingly difficult because large groups often contain a mix of legal and illegal devices.
The ordinance additionally would require businesses selling motorized devices to provide buyers information about Gilbert’s local rules.
Councilmember Kenny Buckland questioned whether minors should be able to purchase high-powered e-bikes at all.
“I don't think that a 16-year-old should be able to buy these,” Buckland said.
The proposal also includes a new transportation safety education program similar to traffic school. Riders cited for civil violations could attend safety classes instead of paying fines, with parents required to attend alongside minors.
“The whole intent in this education is we just don't want to see people get hurt,” Angstead said. “We're seeing kids get hit, and it would be great to get the parents and the kids in the same room and do some education and maybe curb some of this behavior because we don't want to see the catastrophic result out in the community.”
Town staff emphasized that enforcement alone will not solve the issue.
“We can't enforce our way out of this,” Angstead said. “It takes a community.”
Gilbert officials hope to bring the ordinance forward for formal adoption June 9, with an emergency clause potentially allowing immediate enforcement and education efforts ahead of the summer break.
Meet Tom Tom Blodgett joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2022, when the company acquired Community Impact Newspaper's Phoenix-area properties. Raised in Arizona, he has spent more than 35 years in journalism in the state.
Community: He has served as an instructional professional in the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication since 2005, and is editorial adviser to The State Press, the university's independent student media outlet. He also is director of operations for an 18U girls fastpitch softball team from Gilbert.
Education: Arizona State University with a BS in Journalism.
Random Fact: He lived in Belgium during his freshman year of high school.
Hobbies: Tweeting enthusiastically about ASU softball (season-ticket holder) and grumpily about other local sports (pessimistic fan).
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