‘Basically reckless driving’: Schaumburg enacts regulations on use of e-bikes and scooters

Schaumburg has joined a growing list of suburbs regulating the use of electric bicycles and scooters in the interest of rider and pedestrian safety.

The village board this month approved a measure setting a minimum rider age of 16 years old, requiring riders to wear helmets and use vehicle lights at night, and prohibiting their operation on sidewalks.

“It’s basically reckless driving that’s going on right now,” Mayor Tom Dailly said. “I’m seeing it all the time myself.”

Dailly noted that while a regular e-bike can travel as fast as 28 mph, they can be modified to go faster. He said that while in a car recently he matched the pace of a man riding an e-bike at 40 mph on the sidewalk.

Beyond just speeding, he said some operators act contrary to the rules of the road, including not stopping — or even slowing down — at red lights and stop signs.

Dailly said he suggested lowering the minimum age to 12 years old, but village board members supported the higher age limit.

Neighboring Elk Grove Village recently passed e-bikes and e-scooter regulations that take effect July 1. They include a requirement that operators have a driver’s license and a ban from streets that have a speed limit above 35 mph.

Prior to that, Hoffman Estates banned the use of e-bikes on public streets.

A survey among Schaumburg’s peer communities within the Northwest Municipal Conference last December showed few restrictions on e-bikes in the region at that time.

Schaumburg’s measure includes fines of $100 for a first offense, $200 for a second, $300 for a third and $500 for any beyond the third. There’s also a provision for impoundment of a vehicle for up to 60 days — and a fee of $900 for its release — if it’s used recklessly.

Dailly sees the new regulations as an opportunity for greater education rather than the start of a wave of vehicle pursuits and an influx of fines.

“No matter what we do, enforcement is going to be difficult,” he said.