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MOUNT VERNON — Are e-bikes allowed on bike trails?
Yes and no.
When in doubt, ask your local park officials and trail boards to see what their policy is on allowing e-bikes on bike trails.
For county trails, e-bikes are allowed on bike trails, depending on what class the e-bike is, Knox County Park District Director Lori Totman said.
Meaning, how fast can it go?
Ohio categorizes e-bikes into three classes identified by motor and speed, according to the Ohio Revised Code.
“No person shall operate a class one electric bicycle, a class two electric bicycle, or a class three electric bicycle on a path that is intended to be used primarily for mountain biking, hiking, equestrian use, or other similar uses or any other single track or natural surface trail that has historically been reserved for non-motorized use, unless the county, township, municipal corporation, other local authority or state agency as defined in section 1.60 of the Revised Code with control over the path by resolution, ordinance, or rule authorizes the use of a class 1 electric bicycle, a class 2 electric bicycle, or a class 3 electric bicycle on such a path,” the law reads.
If you are a cyclist, without an e-bike you can sustain 20 miles per hour for short spurts of time, Totman said. This falls under class 1 and 2 e-bikes.
“But 30 miles per hour (class 3 e-bikes) on a bicycle trail that you’re sharing with people pushing strollers, children on tricycles, people walking dogs on leash, that’s way too fast,” Totman said. “I’m thinking even when I’m on the trail, and I see somebody like a serious cyclist traveling that fast when the trail is crowded, and busy, 20 miles per hour is too fast, it really is.
“But in the state of Ohio, most people are going with class one and two on the multi-use trails.”
Totman said a lot of people use e-bikes to assist them if they’re going up an incline or if it’s a person who has some health issues or an older person. E-bikes are actually permitting them to stay active and on the trails for longer periods of time, the parks director added.
On who decides what class e-bike is allowed on Knox County trails,, Totman reports to the Park District Board of Commissioners and then the trails are overseen by a 2051(c) three board, the Heart of Ohio Trail and the Kokosing Gap Trail Board.
Licking County is in alignment with Knox County, allowing e-bikes of class 1 and 2 to travel on trails, according to Operations Administrator Tami McAdams. Attempts to reach Delaware Preservation Parks were unsuccessful.
“We don’t want to shut them down altogether, by and large,” Totman said. “I think people are responsible and when trails are crowded, and you have all those different scenarios that I just mentioned, I think people are pretty good about slowing down.”
