E-Bike Related Incidents in Orange County: Why Do They Happen and What Can We Do to Prevent Them?
- alisoviejoyouthcou
- Dec 27, 2023
- 3 min read
By: Olive Kim
(Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)
By Olive Kim
September 6, 2023
E-bikes have seen a recent spike in popularity since the pandemic. According to Business Insider, “e-bike retail sales nearly quadrupled in the past four years, rising from $240.1 million in
2019 to $885.4 million in 2022” (Levin 24). Similar to the increase in the number of e-bike riders, the number of e-bike related incidents and injuries has escalated dramatically. According to the Daily Pilot, “Providence Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo documented 198 e-bike
injuries. Doctors saw 113 injuries in 2021 and just 34 in 2020” (Cormaci and Nguyen, 8). This means that the number of injuries that were recorded increased by over 230% in a single year.
(Ricki Lee / Insider)
But what are the causes of all of these injuries? CBS Los Angeles states that “about 45% of e-bike accident patients were not wearing helmets, and the majority had severe injuries” (CBS 6). The lack of helmet-wearing among e-bike riders is dangerous because of the high speeds that e-bikes are capable of traveling at. E-bikes are able to go up to 28 miles-per-hour, but can surpass this speed if going downhill. Also, many e-bike riders are young teens who have not
gone through driver’s education and don’t have their driver’s license yet. Thus, this demographic that is riding the e-bikes has no knowledge of the rules of the road, so when riding alongside
cars, they can be unpredictable, and on the same token, some drivers are unsure of how to coexist with the e-bikers on the road. This can result in accidents where cars run into children riding
e-bikes, and e-bikers can run into other cars or even pedestrians.
Image from Biking Bis
In Aliso Viejo, there are regulations on e-bikes, such as lowering the speed limit to 5 mph on sidewalks and 10 mph on designated trails and roads. These are helpful measures to prevent accidents from occurring as frequently, but it is not enough. Often, e-bikers will just ignore the speed limit that they are required to follow. Especially since e-bikers are around cars and pedestrians, going above the required speed limit can cause accidents due to brakes being ineffective at high speeds. In order to further prevent injuries and damage, there are several measures that we must take. One, e-bike riders should be required to wear helmets. Mission
Hospital gives out free helmets for people if they cannot afford to buy one. Though helmets may not completely protect riders from every injury, it will lessen the degree of the injuries they receive. Also, e-bike riders should be required to obtain a license similar to a driver’s license in order to be allowed to operate an e-bike. This will ensure that e-bike riders are aware of the rules of the road and will be more responsible riders. Similarly, there should be lessons in driver’s education which teaches drivers how to drive alongside e-bikes to prevent drivers from running over e-bikers. If we can implement these solutions, we will be able to save many lives and
prevent e-bike riders and the people around them from getting hurt.
Works Cited:
CBS Los Angeles. “2 On Your Side: Orange County Sees Spike In E-Bike Accidents.” KCAL News, 3 November 2021,
https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/2-on-your-side-orangecounty-sees-spike-in-e-bike-accidents/.
Hatch, Holland and Moreau, Daniella. “Aliso Viejo to Enforce New Regulations on E-bikes.” Voice of OC, 12 October 2022,
Levin, Tim. “The incredible, Earth-saving electric bike is having a moment.” Insider, 22 April 2023,
Turner, Andrew. “Educating kids about e-bike safety a joint effort of Laguna Beach city, school and police officials.” Daily Pilot, LA Times, 16 July 2021,
Very interesting information. It is helpful knowing how harmful these vehicles are and how we can keep our youth and community at large safe.