Before 2019 New Jersey's laws describing ebikes, aka pedelecs, was largely in line with the rest of the US, and even the world. But for some reason, certainly not based on research or data, Trenton legislators decided those rules and categories were unacceptable, and introduced a new definition:
 |
| California's triage poster correctly identifies C3s as ebikes |
As of May 14, 2019, a brand new vehicle class was added to Title 39: “
Low-speed electric bicycle.”
This new vehicle was described as “a two or three-wheeled vehicle with
fully operable pedals and an electric motor of less than 750 watts,
whose maximum speed on a paved level surface, when powered solely by a
motor, while operated by a person weighing 170 pounds, is less than 20
miles per hour.”
This effectively abolished the well established category of ebike, and redefined Class 3 eBikes as high-powered, high-speed electric motorcycles, essentially an emoto requiring registration, insurance and a licence to ride.
Elsewhere eBikes were, and continue to be classed as bicycles where the electric motor is activated only when the rider pedals. This type of vehicle is termed a pedelec. The legislation went on to muddy the waters by introducing a "throttle" to Class 2 eBikes, a feature actually prohibited in the European eBike definition.
In the aftermath, the state failed to institute a means to actually register Class 3s at the DMV, and besides, no one was interested in implementing or enforcing the new law, so guess what? It died the death...
Nor were the state or the police interested interested in even enforcing the existing law on high-power electric motorcycles - emotos - frequently, along with an ill-informed media, conflating illegally used emotos as ebikes in media and police "accident" reports.
 |
| Emoto mis-identified as an ebike... as usual |
So ebike became the goto term for describing all electric bicycle incidents.
And slowly our law makers became aware, mostly driven by ill-informed media and social media comment. Even police reports failed to correctly identify emotos prefering the easier term, ebikes. They're all ebikes, right? Wrong.
But that didn't stop Trenton tightening up their already existing and clearly useless legislation with a new law, once again based on nothing more than ill-informed and sensational reports, and hearsay, and almost certainly not an iota of research or data.
New Jersey's 2026 low powered electric bicycle laws - S4834 - were based on Senators' interests and in particular two incidents. In one two victims were murdered while legally riding their ebikes. In another a child illegally riding an emoto was hit by a vehicle driven by a driver who subsequently was charged with dangerous driving.
And even while the the bill was being voted on, the deaths of two children while riding emotos was used to justify an ebike law.
 |
| Cargo carrying / delivery ebike |
So what's the answer to these tragedies? Regulate ebikes even more, obviously...
In my own town, the topic of "ebikes" is guaranteed to draw more ill-informed comment and gossip on the local Facebook and Nextdoor pages.
I walk and ride an in category ebike around Red Bank, and by observation, at least 80% of the "ebikes" I see are in fact electric motorcycles, frequently driven by children. Laws already exist to control that behaviour, but the town and the PD weren't interested.
I have spoken to the mayor, several councillors and successive police chiefs on this topic. I have lobbied NJ senators, representatives and NJ bike and pedestrian advocacy organisations over the past several years. I even wrote about the issues it in past blogs.
 |
| Child carrying ebike on school run |
Yet here we are, with an incompetent law about start.
There is no adequate structure to implement many of its requirements, based on a false premise and demonizing law-abiding ebike owners, while banning environmentally, socially essential ebikes such as ecargo-, child carrying and adaptive ebikes. All this while failing to curb the illegal use of emotos.
Emoto users ignored the previous law, as did the police, so why not continue to speed and wheelie around town.
Ebikes are an essential element contributing to quality of life in many ways:
Environment - air quality, noise...
Traffic density - smaller footprint, safer streets and sidewalks...
Fossil energy dependency - and associated fuel costs...
Community - equity, mobility for all...
It's beginning to look like New Jersey doesn't care...
 |
| Illegally operated emotos in my old home town of Plymouth UK. Police intercept users who are charged, fined, and their emotos confiscated and taken directly to the crusher. |
.jpg)
