JOHNSON COUNTY, Kan. — KSHB 41 reporter Elyse Schoenig covers Johnson County. She also focuses on issues surrounding the cost of healthcare, saving for retirement and personal debt. Share your story idea with Elyse.
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Several Johnson County cities have been cracking down on e-bikes and e-scooters over the last few months.
Earlier this week, the Blue Valley School District shared that its elementary and middle school students will no longer be allowed to use electric scooters or electric bikes on or near district property beginning Jan. 1. During this week’s school board meeting, the district shared a video large groups of middle school students riding e-bikes and electric scooters near 159th Street and Metcalf Avenue, a wide and busy intersection.
Watch: How Johnson County cities are cracking down on e-bikes, e-scooters:
“We'll continue to evaluate,” Dan Carney, the district’s Director of Safety & Security, said at the meeting. “If we see problems start to spring up, it may be time to extend.”
Just last week, the Leawood City Council also approved new e-bike and e-scooter regulations:
The following requirements were approved by the city:
- There will be a 15 mph speed limit for bicycles, electric-assisted bicycles and micromobility devices on sidewalks, paths and trails — this doesn’t apply to bicycle lanes or streets.
- Children under 16 years old are not allowed to operate Class 3 e-bikes or ride micromobility devices that can reach over 20 mph on motor power.
- Minors riding e-bikes and micromobility devices must wear helmets. While this was already an established rule, the updated ordinance includes the term “micromobility devices.”
- Riders must follow an electric device’s passenger restrictions. For example, if an e-bike is only designed for one, no passengers are allowed.
- Riders must yield to pedestrians with the right of way and give an audible warning. “Riders must remain attentive, operate at safe speeds for existing conditions, and avoid careless or reckless behavior.”
- Parents and legal guardians may be responsible for children violating the rules. “Violations may result in warnings or citations, and citations issued to minors may be charged to their parents or guardians.”
- The devices are not allowed on interstate, federal and state highways. There are exceptions for riders crossing a state highway as needed.
In October, Prairie Village also passed a new e-bike ordinance. The ordinance gives police officers the power to cite parents when their kids break the rules.
Overland Park launched a signage campaign this summer, in an effort to send those safety messages to its youngest riders. "The intent really is more to create the discussion, make sure parents are having conversations with kids," Meg Ralph, Overland Park's strategic communications director, said. "We have an increased focus on safety and making sure that kids are getting where they need to go as safe as possible."
The signage campaign is one of several steps Overland Park has taken on e-bike and e-scooter safety.
- The city has a helmet ordinance requiring anyone under 18 to wear a helmet when riding an e-bike or e-scooter anywhere — on a trail, street or sidewalk.
- Electric scooters are subject to a 15 mph speed limit.
- Recent ordinances allow e-bikes on streets with a speed limit of 20 mph or higher, while e-scooters are not permitted on those streets.
- Children under 16 are prohibited from riding high-speed e-bikes, and new requirements have been placed on manufacturers.
Leawood parent Leah Maugans calls the e-bike issue a nuanced one, especially in Johnson County.
“When we're thinking about how are we getting kids safely to school, and if all these schools are closing, that's going to increase the distance for some kids…that might be the only way for a kid to get to their middle school,” Maugans said. “The other truth to that is there are kids who are not respectful and not using the rules of the road, and it's a safety risk to them and the drivers.”
Maugans also points to information posted by the American Academy of Pediatrics, which suggests children who are of driving age (15 or 16 years old) or older are better equipped to safely operate e-bikes and e-scooters.
She’s also on the BikeWalkKC board. She said her community involvement is personal.
“Advocacy kind of found me in 2021, when my six-year-old at the time was struck by a car while trying to cross the street just on a family walk,” she said.
Maugans is grateful her son is okay. But, like many parents, it’s why she said she takes children’s transportation seriously - especially with today’s e-bikes and e-scooters.
“E-bikes are not going anywhere,” Maugans said. “People are getting them more and more. And so (it’s) figuring out how to make it work to where we can keep everyone as safe as possible.”
On the topic of municipality regulations, like helmet ordinances and speed limits, Maugans also pointed to work being done at the county level and with MARC.
“It's really just an avenue of providing education and making contact with the parents to make sure everyone understands,” she said.
It’s also why Maugans said the conversation needs to be ongoing - and that it’s one best had together.
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