Before Pennsylvania Legalizes E-Bikes, It Must Get Safety Right
By: Scott L. Bohn
Pennsylvania is confronting a growing public-safety challenge involving e-bikes, e-scooters and other micromobility devices. The concern is no longer theoretical. PennDOT reported bicyclist fatalities rose from 19 in 2024 to 28 in 2025, with 12 killed riding e-bikes. This summer, a 12-year-old York County boy died following an e-bike collision with a pickup truck. And last year, the death of 12-year-old Abigail “Abby” Gillon in a Delaware County e-scooter crash became the catalyst for Senate Bill 1008, known as Abby’s Law.
The Pennsylvania Chiefs of Police Association respects the purpose behind this legislation. No family should endure such a loss, and lawmakers are right to address technology that has outpaced the Vehicle Code. But good intentions do not automatically produce effective public-safety policy.
The question is not whether Pennsylvania should respond. It is whether the proposed framework can actually be enforced—and whether it will reduce injuries and deaths.
The legislation would authorize low-speed electric scooters under defined conditions. It would prohibit riders under 16, require helmets for riders under 18, impose a 20-mph operating limit in specified areas, and apply many bicycle traffic rules. Yet it does not provide the comprehensive licensing, training, identification, and accountability framework normally associated with motorized roadway use.
Traffic laws work best when they are clear at the roadside. An officer must be able to identify the device, determine whether it is lawful, identify the operator, verify applicable requirements, and take action. That becomes much more difficult when the operator may be a minor, the device lacks readily identifiable registration, and its technical capabilities may be difficult to determine during a street encounter.
Pennsylvania already faces similar challenges with e-bikes, where device classifications, aftermarket modifications, and varying capabilities complicate enforcement. This is not merely a drafting problem. It is an operational enforcement problem.
PCPA reviewed subsequent proposals to strengthen the scooter framework. Local registration and inspection authority, restrictions on higher-speed roadways and certain sidewalks, parental-responsibility provisions and creation of a general offense for unauthorized devices are constructive steps. But they do not resolve the central weaknesses.
Law enforcement needs more than authority on paper. Officers need a statute that is understood by riders and parents, and that can be applied safely, fairly and consistently throughout the Commonwealth.
Optional municipal registration and inspection invite a patchwork of rules across Pennsylvania’s 2,500-plus municipalities. Insurance may remain discretionary. Warning-first enforcement and modest fines may provide insufficient deterrence. Most importantly, there is still no universal licensing, training, or education requirement.
There is also a practical safety concern in enforcement itself. Stopping an inexperienced or underage rider on a small device is not the same as stopping a car. A frightened rider may panic, flee, or move suddenly into traffic. Officers must balance enforcement against the immediate danger an encounter may create.
Motorists face uncertainty as well. E-scooters are small, quiet, and difficult to detect in complex traffic environments. Their small wheels, limited stability, braking characteristics and reduced visibility can magnify the consequences of potholes, roadway debris, sudden movements and speed differentials. Those risks remain regardless of the regulatory framework.
For these reasons, PCPA believes the clearest and most enforceable statewide standard remains a prohibition on electric scooters on public roadways.
But if the General Assembly determines that prohibition is not an option, Pennsylvania should not settle for partial regulation.
At minimum, legalization should require a uniform statewide framework—not a municipality-by-municipality collection of rules. Every legal e-scooter should have registration or another readily visible identification system so officers can determine lawful status and establish accountability.
Pennsylvania should establish a meaningful minimum operating age and require standardized rider education or safety training before roadway use. Riders should also carry appropriate liability insurance so injured parties and motorists are not left bearing financial consequences created by an uninsured operator.
The Commonwealth should mandate meaningful equipment standards, including brakes, lighting, reflectors, and visibility requirements sufficient for operation around motor vehicles. Maximum speed and power specifications should be uniform, clearly defined, and resistant to circumvention through aftermarket modification.
Where minors are permitted to operate, parental accountability must have real meaning. Parents or guardians who authorize, purchase, or knowingly permit unlawful operation should have defined responsibilities and consequences—not aspirational language that is difficult to enforce.
Finally, penalties must be sufficient to deter dangerous conduct. Officers need clear statutory authority, predictable procedures, and tools that can be applied consistently from Philadelphia to Erie and Pittsburgh to rural Pennsylvania.
These are not unreasonable barriers to mobility. They are the basic components of a system that recognizes an important reality. Once motorized devices share public roadways with cars, pedestrians and bicycles, public safety cannot depend primarily on voluntary compliance.
Pennsylvania should not legalize first and try to solve the safety problems later.
The measure of any micromobility law should be straightforward: Does it reduce risk for riders, motorists, pedestrians, and police while giving officers a law they can realistically enforce?
If Pennsylvania cannot answer that question with confidence, the Commonwealth should choose the clearer course: prohibition.
If lawmakers choose legalization instead, they should build a comprehensive safety system first—not after another preventable tragedy.
Scott L. Bohn serves as Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Chiefs of Police Association, where he provides statewide leadership on law enforcement policy, professional development, and public safety initiatives. A respected law enforcement executive, he previously served for more than two decades as Chief of Police for the West Chester Police Department and has dedicated his career to advancing effective, ethical, and community-focused policing.
