As Goes California, So Goes The Nation?
The highly charged eBike scene in California finally reached a tipping point, resulting in retail giant Amazon halting sales in California. Amazon officially stated it plans to “stop selling certain high-speed electric bicycles in California after a string of high-profile incidents and a consumer alert that the state attorney general issued last month.”
In April an 81-year-old man in Orange County died after a teenager illegally riding an e-motorcycle struck him. The teen’s mother, Tommi Jo Mejer, has since been charged with involuntary manslaughter in Ed Ashman’s death as officials say she was warned it was illegal for her son to operate the vehicle.
Just before that incident, Rob Bonta, the State’s Attorney General, in conjunction with several county district attorneys, put forth a consumer alert about the safety laws related to eBikes. “Vehicles with two wheels that can exceed 28mph using pedal assistance or can exceed 20mph with throttle assistance are considered mopeds or motorcycles rather than ebikes,” claimed the alert.
The alert warned that retailers were marketing two-wheeled vehicles as electric bicycles when they did not qualify as such. Mopeds and motorcycles have age limits and require special licensing in California.
“Sometimes, what looks like an eBike or is marketed as an eBike is not a bike at all. We are seeing a surge of safety incidents on our sidewalks, parks and streets,” stated Bonta. Amazon responded it is working to remove listings for eBikes or e-motorcycles that do not comply with California regulations.
Todd Spitzer, the Orange County district attorney who charged Mejer, praised the development and noted in a statement that last week a 13-year-old boy died after crashing an e-motorcycle he was riding: “More than 100 deaths across the United States have resulted from eBike and E-motorcycle crashes and injuries have increased 430% in the last four years in southern California,” claims Spitzer.
Amazon has announced it will no longer sell eBikes in California that exceed state speed limits, following a consumer alert issued by AB Bonta last month. However it looks like it is still possible to order “illegal” eMotos online as of this morning.
