SHELBY – No city in Richland County is more known for bicycles than Shelby. But what is a bike? City Council answered that question Monday night.
Police Chief Lance Combs worked on that question for a number of hours that Mayor Steven Schag “wouldn’t even want to try to estimate,” he said.
The legislation sought to define what is and isn’t a bike, and therefore the laws vehicles must follow on the road.
“People think that the rules of the road don’t apply to you if you’re on a bicycle or an e-bike,” Combs said. “Our goal is … not to be punitive, but to show some enforcement. Hopefully (we will) gain some compliance.”
Legislation defined a bicycle as a “pedal-powered vehicle upon which a human operator sits,” including e-bikes. Motorized bicycles and mopeds, however, are not considered bicycles.
This is separate from motor vehicles, which draw power from something electrical, not “muscular power,” as the legislation puts it.
“For it to be an e-bike, it has to have functional pedals,” Combs said. “Just because it’s electric doesn’t mean you can ride it on the road or the sidewalk.”
Enforcement of the legislation will be key, Councilman Nathan Martin said.
The legislation doesn’t provide much in the way of enforcement, Combs said, but as biking technology has progressed, definitions simply needed updating.
“This is not heavy-handed. I do not want to become the scooter police,” Combs said. “I think it starts with enforcing existing laws and certain things that people don’t realize, such as e-bikes are not allowed to be ridden on the sidewalk when they’re under electric power.
“They have to be pedaled. Most people don’t know that, but it is a law.”
Combs described education as the primary form of enforcement. Juveniles offending for the first time will be given a warning sheet with information, not a citation or fine.
“We wanted to take a major approach to an issue that every community … in Ohio is facing,” Schag said. “I like this piece of legislation.”
Shelby wants to keep bicycles in its city’s personality, but it wants to do so safely, officials stated. The laws are in place. The new legislation put forth simply makes it easier to define.
“All the traffic laws are already in place,” Combs said. “They just need to be enforced, and we need to understand what all the traffic laws are that currently exist.”
