Ordinance to allow all e-bikes on Kern River Trail fails to advance from committee
Jun. 21—An attempt to allow all electronic bikes on the Kern River Trail failed to pass at a meeting of the city of Bakersfield's Legislative and Litigation Committee on Monday.
A motion to forward to the City Council an ordinance that would have allowed clarified e-bike use on the trail was met with a tie, dooming it for the time being.
Over the past several months, e-bikes have been a hot topic in Bakersfield. Currently, state law defines e-bikes in three classes and it is not always clear to the public which bikes are allowed on the trail and which are not.
According to state law, Class 1 e-bikes are equipped with a motor that provides assistance only when a rider is pedaling, stopping once the bike has reached 20 miles per hour.
Class 2 e-bikes are equipped with a motor that provides assistance even when a rider is not pedaling. These bikes also limit the motor to 20 miles per hour.
Class 3 e-bikes are equipped with a speedometer and motor and provide assistance only when a rider is pedaling. These bikes, however, allow the motorized assistance to persist until the bike reaches 28 miles per hour.
State law dictates Class 1 and 2 e-bikes should be considered as regular bikes, meaning they are allowed on bike paths unless expressly prohibited by local municipalities.
In March, two of the committee's three members voted to authorize city staff to draft an ordinance that would let all classes of e-bikes on the pathway for the first time.
That ordinance was discussed Monday, but could not achieve the majority needed to be forwarded on to the City Council for final approval. The vote was 1-1 with Councilman Andrae Gonzales in favor and Councilman Ken Weir against.
Previously, Councilman Chris Parlier had voted to approve drafting the ordinance. He missed Monday's meeting with an illness. Reached over the phone, he said he felt it would be inappropriate to say how he would have voted if he had been present.
The prospect of e-bikes on the Kern River Trail is not completely defeated yet. Gonzales said he would bring the ordinance directly to the City Council at a future meeting.
"I think it's important for the full council to have an opportunity to review the draft changes and consider adoption," Gonzales said after the meeting. "If other councilmembers disagree with that, we can take it up as a full council."
In addition to allowing all classes of e-bikes, the ordinance would also have permitted electronic scooters and skateboards. It would also have expanded the definition of banned vehicles to include mopeds and off-road vehicles or anything powered by gas.
Not everyone has been pleased with the prospect of e-bikes. During the meeting, Weir likened the vehicles to motorcycles.
"Where I live, I deal with bicyclists every day. And some are very good, respectable riders. They don't go out and try to commit suicide in front of my car. But others, and a significant amount, try to commit suicide in front of my car, and those are the people I'm talking about," Weir said during the meeting. "Those people have no respect for anything, and you get them on a fast-moving bicycle down a path that's not designed for that, it's going to be trouble."
Other members of the community also voiced concern. The city received 67 public comments prior to the meeting, mostly against the ordinance. Several people up to the meeting on Monday tried to prevent its passage.
The opponents worried that the increased use of e-bikes on the bike trail could lead to e-bikes on the equestrian and hiking trails along the Kern River floodplain. They said a petition signed by 950 people urged the City Council not to allow e-bikes on off-pavement parts of the Kern River Parkway.
"While pedestrians are required to, and this is a quote, 'yield the right of way by staying to the right of all bicycles, electronic bicycles and other electrically-motorized modes of transportation,' with two way traffic, it would seem that 'avoiding an immediate hazard' will become very difficult, especially on high use sections of the Kern River Trail," said Marion Vargas. "Pedestrians don't have rearview mirrors to see traffic coming from behind."
You can reach Sam Morgen at 661-395-7415. You may also follow him on Twitter @smorgenTBC.
