Arlington Heights hits the brakes on full-scale ban for youth on e-bikes, e-scooters

Arlington Heights trustees are likely to prohibit kids younger than 16 from riding high-speed electric bicycles around town, but for now have stopped short of extending the ban to lower speed e-bikes and e-scooters.

Police Chief Nick Pecora’s initial draft ordinance called for an all-encompassing ban on minors under 16 operating so-called “motorized mobility vehicles or devices” on sidewalks and streets.

But following comments from adult advocates and even some youth riders, village board members late Monday agreed to claw back the proposed regulations.

The rules — pending a final vote Sept. 2 — would bar youth from operating Class 3 e-bikes, which can go 28 mph, but permit anyone of any age to ride Class 1 and 2 e-bikes, e-scooters and other devices.

At the same time, trustees agreed to keep a recklessness standard in the ordinance, so that police could cite anyone operating any vehicle “with a conscious disregard for the safety of others and/or the operator.”

Such a violation could come with a $250 fine and impoundment of the device.

Some trustees, including Tom Schwingbeck and Scott Shirley, sought the wider-scale restrictions, arguing the revised version had too many loopholes.

“If we put (the original ordinance) into effect, we can always soften it up. I think it’s important to move forward with something quickly. … This is a growing concern,” said Schwingbeck, adding that he’s had several run-ins on the road with users of the motorized devices.

“We’ve been talking for years here about cars speeding through our community, and now we’ve got e-bikes and e-scooters with all the cars, and a lot of people are not following the rules of the road,” he added. “So this is just a recipe for not a disaster, but more disasters — because we’ve already had some.”

Other trustees, including Wendy Dunnington and Bill Manganaro, were sensitive to the concerns of about a half dozen speakers who came to the board’s committee meeting Monday night and said a fuller ban would impede transportation options for responsible operators — both youth and adults.

The original draft ordinance would have barred anyone from riding a motorized device on streets above 25 mph.

“We’re just rushing this a little bit too much and we need to get input from all the different users on the roadway — not just cars — so that we’re not making it too restrictive,” Dunnington said. “Because I do think that there are people that are riding responsibly and have a real need for these kind of devices. They are good for the environment. It’s less trips in the car.”

Following public comment, Mayor Jim Tinaglia suggested — and the rest of the board agreed to — the compromise version that would ban youth from Class 3 e-bikes, retain rules on the reckless operation of any device.

The board also directed three village panels — the bicycle and pedestrian advisory commission, senior citizens commission and youth commission — to do further analysis on the issue.

The proposal also would require all riders to wear helmets, and forbid them from carrying packages while driving.