2025-2026 Group 2 - 2nd Place Essay by Evangeline Jarboe

Electric bicycles, also known as e-bikes, are bicycles “equipped with fully operable pedals and an electric motor of less than 750 watts,” according to the California Bicycle Coalition (Claxton). In the past few decades alone, use and production of electric bicycles have skyrocketed. They can be found worldwide, widely promoted as a sustainable, affordable, and convenient mode of transportation available to anyone. As production grows, and as faster speeds become achievable, critics have noticed a correlated increase in injuries and deaths as a result of e-bike accidents, which has spiked controversy regarding their relatively unrestricted access, and some suggest the implementation of protocol similar to motorcycle licenses that require written exams, skill tests, fees, DMV access, and waiting periods.

The most reasonable conclusion is that no license of any kind should be required to operate an electric bicycle, given that the motors are limited to 750 watts. After this point, it is reasonable to require licenses as for any other motorcycle, as bikes with power greater than 750 watts reach speeds comparable to a motorcycle. Instead, helmet, age, and class labeling requirements should be implemented to ensure safety. This viewpoint can be seen in states like California, where the only restrictions are helmet and age requirements on Class Three bikes, which reach 28mph (Claxton). This standard should be applied nationwide, as the lack of license and registration encourages and allows anyone to be environmentally friendly.

Additionally, it allows renters at tourist destinations and national parks to continue service without turning away customers due to required applications and tests. A National Park Service Deputy Director explains, “‘[E-bikes] make bicycle travel easier and more efficient, and they provide an option for people who want to ride a bicycle but might not otherwise do so because of physical fitness, age, disability, or convenience, especially at high altitudes or in hilly or strenuous terrain’” (“National Park Service”). With license requirements in place, an important opportunity is discouraged.

Conversely, those in favor of required licensing maintain convincing arguments regarding safety concerns. Professors at University of California, San Francisco, note that “In a cross-sectional study including 86,623 individuals, electric bicycle injuries increased by nearly 100% and electric scooter injuries increased by more than 45% annually” (Fernandez et al. 1). Further, when looking towards motorcycle statistics for comparison, states requiring a skill test for motorcycle permits saw mortality rate ratios between .69 and .84, with a 95% confidence level, meaning they saw significant decreases in fatalities when permit laws were implemented (McGwin et al. 1). This conclusion may suggest to critics that if a similar law was put in place for e-bikes, a decrease in e-bike injuries could be ensured.

While critics argue the parallels that electric bicycles have with motorcycles, this comparison isn’t necessarily fair. For one, the National Transportation Safety Board recognizes that between 2017 and 2021, there were approximately 119 e-bike and e-scooter fatalities, while the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety notes that 6335 motorcyclists died in 2023 alone, the greatest number recorded at that time (“Micromobility” 7 and “Motorcycles and ATVs”). While this statistic does not account for usage or miles traveled, it’s important to note that a shift away from e-bikes due to licensing laws will not solve the problem at hand. Furthermore, Alvin Holbrook argues that the increase in fatalities that critics analyze actually comes from the increase in electric motorcycles, not e-bikes (Holbrook). He points out that some statistics include vehicles that do, and should, require licenses, in their fatality rates.

Additionally, the argument that licensing would eliminate the rising death rates is unreasonable. As seen in cars and motorcycles, having a license does not guarantee safe behavior or the following of laws. In reality, we see decreases in injury from precautions like helmets, infrastructure, and speed caps. Helmet requirements, for one, create an adequate bridge between no restrictions at all and mandatory licenses. The World Health Organization emphasizes, “Quality helmets reduce the risk of death by over six times, and reduce the risk of brain injury by up to 74%” (“Helmets” 12). If helmet laws were to be implemented worldwide, it’s likely we will see a drop in e-bike fatalities without restricting their accessibility. Overall, this suggests that the measures taken to prevent motorcycle injuries may not be applicable to e-bikes.

The benefits of allowing riders to utilize e-bikes, license-free, far outweigh the downsides. If licensing were required, the price that comes with them would discourage the use of e-bikes and ultimately undo some of the environmental progress that e-bike use has made. The Institute of Transportation & Development Policy reviews a report which “identifies the individual countries with the largest emissions reductions potential as India and the United States, where a switch to e-bikes could take more than 40 million private vehicles (cars and two-wheelers) in India, and 8 million cars in the US, off of the road“ (“E-Bikes: Charging”). As a nation, continuing to encourage the use of e-bikes will leave our country with a much smaller carbon footprint and help us take a step in the right direction.

Further, the proportion of injuries obtained by electric bicycles and scooters is not convincing enough to take measures that have lasting impacts on the progress we have made, especially in comparison to other modes of transportation. Finally, the affordability of e-bikes plays a large role in their accessibility and the opportunity they provide for people who might not be able to invest into an electric car. Accessibility is the key advantage of e-bikes, and society would take that away by implementing the process that obtaining a license entails.

In summary, while policymakers strive to create requirements that lead to a safer future, implementing motorcycle style requirements on e-bikes is unnecessary, leads to higher motorcycle use, and a loss of transportation equity. While helmet and age requirements are directed at the core of the issue, licenses simply restrict access and demotivate riders from staying sustainable. 

Bibliography

Claxton, Kevin. “What Is an E-Bike? A Guide to California E-Bike Classifications.” California Bike Coalition. 21 Jun. 2024. www.calbike.org/california-e-bike-classifications/

“E-bikes: Charging Toward Compact Cycling Cities.” Institute for Transportation & Development Policy. Mar. 2024. www.itdp.org/publication/e-bikes-charging-toward-compact-cycling-cities/

Fernandez, Adrian N., et al. “Injuries With Electric vs Conventional Scooters and Bicycles.” National Library of Medicine. 23 Jul. 2024. doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.24131

“Helmets.” World Health Organization. www.iris.who.int/server/api/core/bitstreams/fd2eaade-4d74-4792-aab4-60ac2f3b6 79a/content

Holbrook, Alvin. “E-Bike Injuries Are Up 1,800%, But It's Not Actually E-Bikes: It's Electric Motorcycles.” Velo. 4 Dec. 2025. www.velo.outsideonline.com/ebike/ebike-culture/e-bike-injuries-alarming-rise-ur banist-update

McGwin, Gerald et al. “The effect of state motorcycle licensing laws on motorcycle driver mortality rates.” National Library of Medicine. Feb. 2004. doi.org/10.1097/01.TA.0000044625.16783.A9. 

“Micromobility: Data Challenges Associated with Assessing the Prevalence and Risk of Electric Scooter and Electric Bicycle Fatalities and Injuries.” National Transportation Safety Board. 14 Nov. 2022. www.ntsb.gov/safety/safety-studies/Documents/SRR2201.pdf

“Motorcycles and ATVs.” Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. www.iihs.org/research-areas/fatality-statistics/detail/motorcycles-and-atvs