The rapid rise of e-bikes and electric motorcycles in Gilbert has created new safety concerns, particularly their use among teenagers, Gilbert Police Assistant Chief Michael Angstead said.
“If we were to go out on the roads today, you’d see the use of e-bikes has really surged in recent years,” Angstead said during an Aug. 26 council study session. “These e-bikes in Gilbert have become kind of a rising challenge for us in terms of safety.”
Angstead walked council through classifications of e-bikes — class one, two, and three — and warned that many parents may not realize how different some devices are from ordinary bicycles. While class one and two e-bikes top out at 20 mph, class three models can reach 28 mph and are restricted to riders age 16 and older.
Electric motorcycles, which often resemble e-bikes but lack pedals, fall under a different category of state law and are largely illegal to operate on public streets in Gilbert.
“In terms of the law, it’s exactly like buying your kid a Harley Davidson, whether it’s gas powered or electric,” Angstead said of the motorcycle-style devices. “They’re cheap and they’re kind of like an e-bike, but they’re for most part completely illegal to operate in Gilbert.”
The department has tracked a troubling shift in accident data. For the first time in 2024, juveniles were involved in more bike-vehicle collisions than adults. Angstead attributed much of the trend to the popularity and speed of e-bikes.
“You could only ride so fast on a traditional bike, right? You can only crash so bad … but now these e-bikes where you’re going 28 miles per hour, life comes at you pretty quick,” he said.
In addition to crashes with cars, non-vehicular bike crashes are also on the rise. Fire department data showed juvenile wipeouts and falls increased from one in fiscal year 2023 to 12 in 2025. Helmet use remains low, with only 23% of riders in serious collisions confirmed to be wearing one.
Angstead said Gilbert has invested heavily in safer infrastructure, including wider bike lanes, green bike lanes, improved canal crossings, and school safety projects, totaling more than $215 million.
But enforcement and education remain key challenges. The police department has begun a “Know Your Ride” campaign and is testing drones to help monitor large groups of teens riding dangerously.
“What these kids don’t like getting is tickets,” Angstead said. “What they really don’t like is when we take their $3,000 e-bike away.”
The council also discussed possible ordinance options, ranging from keeping the status quo to requiring helmets for all riders under 18, or even for all bicyclists regardless of age.
Angstead noted Gilbert briefly had a helmet ordinance in 2001 before it was repealed.
While no action was taken, several council members signaled interest in pursuing helmet requirements and exploring retailer education measures similar to those adopted recently in Scottsdale.
“Our goal … would be to start off with that pretty heavy education component, trying to get the word out that we have a new ordinance, it’s coming, let’s get the bike helmets on,” Angstead said. “But after, as we’ve learned with new ordinances, eventually we have to actually enforce it.”
Please submit comments at yourvalley.net/letters or email them to AzOpinions@inusua.org. We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as they meet our Civility Guidelines. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org. Tom Blodgett can be reached by email at tblodgett@iniusa.org or follow him @sp_blodgett on X.
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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