Police enforce new e-bike regulations as new Utah law takes effect May 6

ST. GEORGE — Law enforcement officers statewide are cracking down on many e-bike riders in the wake of a new law that will take effect May 6.

The law was initially passed by lawmakers and signed as HB381, requiring riders of e-bikes and e-motorcycles under the age of 21 to wear a helmet while traveling on public roads.

The bill also allows a police officer to hold the individual's electric vehicle and release it to a parent if a violation of the law is observed.

In a video posted on social media, officers in Washington County said that, with the growing popularity of electric bicycles, education has been a priority and that enforcement of the law is becoming crucial.

"Now we're to the point where we're going to start impounding and issuing citations not only to the juveniles, but also to the parents that are allowing this," St. George Police Sgt. Jeremy Needles said.

In addition to the new law set to take effect next week, there are current laws already in place for high-power electric motorcycles like Surrons. These laws include registering the bikes as off-highway vehicles and obtaining education certificates. State law also restricts off-highway vehicle operation on streets/highways, with few exceptions.

There are also age requirements for e-bike operation: children under 8 are prohibited from operating any e-bike classification, and individuals between 8 and 14 must have adult supervision, according to the Utah Department of Public Safety. Children under 16 cannot operate a class 3 e-bike, which is a high-performance electric bicycles that provide pedal-assisted speeds up to 28 mph.

"There's just no safe way for these vehicles to be on our roadways," Needles said. "Sometimes when you can't encourage people to be safe, you have to enforce them to be safe."

Needles said that in the past week, St. George police have investigated cases involving 13 kids on Surron-style bikes who have run from officers when approached, adding that this is a trend on social media that can result in "your death or somebody else's death."

"Yesterday, we had a kid run from us," he said. "He about got T-boned by a car and luckily he stopped."

Fleeing law enforcement is also a felony in Utah, and St. George police officer Dennis Blackman noted that getting pulled over by an officer isn't "the end of the world."

"If you decide you want to take off and evade the officer, it makes things so much worse," he said in the video. "What could have been an educational moment — maybe call your parents ... turns into a potential felony. ... Make the smart choice. Pull over to the side of the road. Have a conversation with the officer. You might have to call your parents. It's not the end of the world. We don't want someone to try to evade the police and get in an accident."

With the new law set to take effect, officers want the public to know that in 2027, riders ages 8 to 15 will need adult supervision or a safety certification to operate e-bikes.

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