San Clemente moves to toughen up its e-bike rules beyond beachside bans
With electric bicycles booming in popularity, San Clemente city officials have long grappled with how best to regulate them.
In 2022, the City Council banned e-bikes from beaches, coastal trails and the pier in response to resident complaints over safety. San Clemente even enlisted hometown comedians Chad and JT to go out and get people “stoked” about the new rules in a humorous public service announcement video that same year.
“Don’t worry, we won’t fine you. We don’t have the authority to do so,” Chad said to a couple walking their e-bikes off the beach trail in the video. “We just have the authority to remind you of what’s up!”
“We’re like cool narcs,” JT quipped.
The growing popularity of e-bikes has created a conundrum for Orange County cities as they try to balance state climate goals with concerns about rider and pedestrian safety.
But San Clemente Mayor Victor Cabral noted during a Tuesday City Council meeting that he continued to receive daily complaints about e-bikes, including riders routinely disobeying traffic signs and even doing wheelies down Avenida Pico.
San Clemente Facebook groups are full of residents griping about groups of kids on e-bikes pelting cars with water balloons or riding on traffic lanes.
“Most of the kids out there, you see them with their helmets behaving properly, but there’s always a few bad apples,” Cabral said.
Council members discussed and moved forward with a slew of new regulations on e-bikes, including a ban on dangerous stunts and a helmet requirement for riders under 18, to better align the city with state laws.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Department would take the enforcement lead on e-bike traffic stops, but code officers, park rangers and lifeguards also have the authority to issue citations.
“It is not unique to San Clemente,” said Chief of Police Services Capt. James Christian of e-bike complaints. “It happens all over in a lot of the contract cities we have, even outside of Orange County. Being a beach community, we do see a prevalence of the e-bike usage and a lot of the bad behavior that’s going along with e-bike usage.”
In June, the Orange County Grand Jury released the “E-bikes: Friend or Foe” report, which recommended that every O.C. city should adopt specific e-bike policies by Dec. 1, 2024, while acknowledging that there’s no “one-size-fits-all” fix.
“A large beachside city will have its own unique policies as compared to smaller inland cities,” the report read. “The rapidly expanding use of e-bikes compels cities to ensure a safe environment for riders of e-bikes and all citizens of Orange County.”
Ahead of the Grand Jury Report, San Clemente council members directed staff in May to draft an ordinance based on input from the city’s public safety committee, which returned for a first reading on Tuesday.
Cabral noted that sheriff deputies have faced enforcement challenges in the past, based on the unique issues that arise with unsafe e-bike riders.
“If they enter into a pursuit with a child on a bike, it’s more of a danger to that kid than anyone else,” he said.
Christian noted that out of such caution, some pursuits have been abandoned by deputies early on. But he also called recent enforcement actions “proactive” and estimated that 60 citations have been issued in the past six weeks.
Councilman Steve Knoblock wanted the e-bike law to be strengthened in one key area.
“I’d like to see a strict liability for parents,” he said. “If there’s a citation, and it’s not paid, that the parents are responsible, somehow.”
City staff had such language ready on hand, which council members agreed to add to the first reading of the law before moving it forward with a unanimous vote.
Citing a need for revenue to address beach erosion, San Clemente City Council approved a ballot measure that would increase the sales tax by half a percent.
Councilman Chris Duncan noted that he’s a father of e-bike riders and supported the amendment.
“Actually, I think this is going to help parents,” Duncan said. “Without this kind of structure, it’s really hard to tell your kid, ‘This is what you have to do.’”
The proposed e-bike law would also provide for a traffic school option for e-bike riders in lieu of paying fines.
Business owners who sell or rent e-bikes would also be required to distribute the new regulations to customers.
The law will come back before City Council for a second procedural vote at a later date, but council members called Tuesday’s vote long overdue.
“Our kids need to be safer on the roads,” said Councilman Mark Enmeier. “We need to be doing all that we can to protect them. This is just a huge improvement to the public safety of our city.”
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