Worthington Returns to E-Bike and Scooter Rules on Nov. 2

Worthington City Council is set to take another run at new rules for e-bikes, e-scooters, skateboards and similar rides on Monday, November 2, at 7 p.m. in the municipal building at 6550 N. High St. The city posted a hearing notice on October 26 for Ordinance No. 31-2026, a rewrite of two chapters of the local traffic code. Members voted unanimously on October 5 to table the measure until that date, as the city's post-meeting report from that night records.

The version in the October 5 agenda packet, labeled as amended, sorts riders into groups. Alongside bicycles and the three state classes of e-bikes, it adds a category called Personal Transportation Devices that covers scooters, skateboards, hoverboards and look-alikes, and it leaves golf carts out. E-bikes and those devices could go no faster than 8 mph on a sidewalk or 15 mph on a shared-use path, and none of them could use unpaved public trails. Every rider would need a bell or similar signal, or would have to call out before passing someone on foot.

Age rules are the part families will notice. Nobody under 14 could ride a Personal Transportation Device, and a minor on one could not carry a passenger. Class 1 and class 2 e-bikes would carry the same minimum age of 14, class 3 models would require riders to be 16, and anyone on a class 3 bike, passengers included, would need a helmet. Riders under 18 on any bicycle or device would need a helmet too. That helmet ticket tops out at $50 the first time, and a first offender can get it dismissed by showing the city prosecutor a receipt for a new helmet within 30 days.

The draft also hands the city manager a sign power: once a no-riding sign is posted at a park, a trail, a plaza or a shopping district, riding a bike or device there becomes an offense. Speed and area violations would be minor misdemeanors, with fines of $50, $100 and $200 for repeat cases, and a judge could order a city safety class in place of the fine.

The ordinance says residents complained about speeding riders and close calls with people on foot, and that council heard the issue in April, July and September. The city's Bike and Pedestrian Advisory Board had a micromobility statement on its October 26 agenda. Council could change the text again before or during the November 2 hearing, so treat these numbers as the latest public draft rather than final law.

For anyone who rides a bike path or scoots through Old Worthington, the result will set where and how fast you can go. Follow the outcome in City, read about the Worthington Together plan council adopted, and find places to stop along the way on our Worthington page.