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TOM BRODBECK
Ever been out for a walk, a jog or a casual bike ride only to be startled by an e-bike, battery-powered scooter or some other personal electric vehicle flying past you at high speed? If so, you probably know how urgent it is for lawmakers to bring in regulations to respond to this growing phenomenon.
Winnipeg is facing a transportation challenge that barely existed a few years ago. Battery-powered bikes, scooters, electric unicycles and other similar vehicles have become common sights on city streets, cycling routes and multi-use pathways.
Their popularity is growing faster than the rules governing them. And that should be a concern for city hall.
There’s no question personal electric vehicles offer people significant advantages. They’re cheaper to operate than cars, produce no direct emissions, reduce traffic congestion and provide people with another option for getting around the city.
In many respects, they represent exactly the kind of transportation alternative governments have been encouraging for years.
But every new form of transportation comes with challenges.
The challenge with e-bikes and similar devices is that many are capable of travelling at speeds far greater than those traditionally seen on cycling infrastructure.
Granted, many riders use them responsibly. But others operate them in ways that create risks for pedestrians, cyclists and even themselves.
Anyone who regularly uses Winnipeg’s active transportation pathways has likely witnessed it.
The problem is not the technology itself. The problem is the absence of clear and consistent rules.
Morden became the first Manitoba municipality earlier this month to address the issue by amending its traffic control bylaw to regulate all personal electric vehicles, including e-bikes, e-scooters and e-skateboards.
The new rules require helmets for all riders, prohibit riding on sidewalks and boulevards, restrict vehicles to one rider, require lights after dark and mandate compliance with traffic laws.
Those measures are neither controversial nor excessive. They simply establish basic expectations for safe operation.
The provincial government has recognized the issue as well. Earlier this month, the legislature passed Bill 43, creating a framework for regulating personal electric vehicles.
The legislation includes provisions related to minimum ages and speed limits, although it has not yet been proclaimed into law. The province still has to draft regulations, which can take months, sometimes years.
Importantly, though, municipalities retain the authority to create local bylaws that reflect their own circumstances. Winnipeg should take advantage of that.
The city faces unique challenges because of its extensive network of active transportation corridors and the sheer volume of people using them. A one-size-fits-all provincial approach may not adequately address local concerns.
The growing body of evidence from other jurisdictions suggests action is warranted.
Hospitals in London, Ont., report increasing numbers of injuries involving e-bikes and e-scooters. Doctors there say they are seeing more severe fractures, facial injuries and head trauma than they typically encounter with conventional bicycles.
Researchers elsewhere have documented similar trends.
The explanation is simple. Vehicles capable of higher speeds create more force during collisions. Crashes become more serious and injuries become more severe.
That reality is particularly concerning when these vehicles share space with pedestrians.
The point is, Winnipeg shouldn’t wait for local injury statistics to reach alarming levels before acting.
City hall needs to establish clear speed limits for personal electric vehicles on multi-use pathways. It should require helmets for all riders, regardless of age. It should clearly define where different classes of vehicles may operate and where they may not.
The city says e-bike regulation is already on its radar and that it’s studying the new legislation. Fair enough. But it shouldn’t drag its feet on this.
No doubt, enforcing bylaws around personal electric vehicles would be difficult. Police resources are limited, and bylaw officers cannot be everywhere at once.
But regulations can be valuable even without aggressive enforcement.
They establish expectations, provide a framework for education and create consequences for dangerous behaviour when intervention becomes necessary.
That is largely the philosophy behind Morden’s approach, which emphasizes compliance and safety rather than aggressive enforcement.
Winnipeg should adopt the same mindset.
To be clear, the goal shouldn’t be to discourage people from using e-bikes or other personal electric vehicles. Far from it. Those modes of transportation should be encouraged.
But the city needs to ensure they can be integrated safely into Winnipeg’s transportation network.
These vehicles are here to stay. Their benefits are too significant to ignore. But so are the risks associated with leaving them largely unregulated.
The longer Winnipeg waits to establish sensible rules, the greater the likelihood that preventable injuries and public frustration will continue to grow.