Riverhead considers e-bike ban on Main Street, sidewalks

As more electric bikes zoom around Riverhead roads, town officials are considering cracking down on where they can operate.

The Town Board is weighing new restrictions on e-bikes to improve safety for riders and pedestrians townwide.

Electric bikes would be prohibited in the heart of downtown Riverhead — on Main Street between Court Street and Route 58 — under the proposal.

The measure also bans e-bikes on sidewalks, sets a maximum speed limit of 15 mph and prohibits use between a half-hour after sunset and a half-hour before sunrise.

A public hearing on the proposal drew no public comment Tuesday night, though town officials said the changes are aimed at improving safety and closing a gap in the town code. Under Riverhead's current code, these restrictions apply only to electric scooters.

“Bikes shouldn’t be operated on any sidewalks,” Town Attorney Erik Howard said during Tuesday’s meeting. “This was a gap in the code that came to us from the police department, so we put in the amendment.”

Town Supervisor Tim Hubbard said the code changes are important and that he often sees electric bikes and scooters “flying down” sidewalks and streets.

Keeping them off sidewalks, particularly on the congested Route 58, would be a key safety improvement, Hubbard said.

“If you’ve ever walked the sidewalk up there, it’s pretty narrow in spots,” he said during the hearing. “If you’re walking and somebody comes up behind you on one of these bikes or scooters, No. 1: you may not be aware of it because they’re fairly quiet; and No. 2: they go at a pretty hefty rate of speed and it's a very dangerous situation.”

Most electric bikes would be banned from the town’s Vietnam Veterans Memorial Recreational Trail, which loops 9 miles around the Enterprise Park at Calverton and is popular with cyclists, joggers and dog walkers. The legislation would allow only Class 1 e-bikes, which provide assistance only while the user is pedaling and stops at 20 mph, on the trail.

Residents discussed the proposed code on Saturday during a Heart of Riverhead Civic Association meeting. Many supported the regulations.

“It’s an affordable means of decent transportation, but you can’t be putting others at risk,” Garrett Moore, a member of the association, said in an interview. “We need more regulations, because right now I see people putting themselves at risk and others at risk. … They fly against traffic.”

The Town Board is accepting public input on the proposal until Sept. 26 and could vote on the measure at its next meeting on Oct. 7.

Riverhead’s proposal also codifies state regulations for e-bikes, including banning them on any road with a posted speed limit of 30 mph or higher, requiring helmets and bans riding them while intoxicated.