Anyone from NC?

[William Hemmingsen]

I am having trouble finding out anything about ebikes in NC. Does anyone know what the rules are in NC in regards to ebikes.

I live in Raleigh,NC and have never even seen an ebike here. The only ebikes I am aware of are the advertisements for ebike tours downtown.

I live in a neighborhood on the Neuse River Greenway. The rules say no motorized vehicles, but not sure if this applies to ebikes, because one of the ebike tour groups does a greenway tour (however no idea if they have special permission).

Anyone from the area that could shed some light? Rules? Perception? Haters? LOL

Thanks!

William

 

[Ann M.]

@William Hemmingsen , just got off the phone with Rich Sathoff, owner of Electric Bicycle City/Electric Scooter City at
111 Seaboard Ave., Suite 110
Raleigh, North Carolina 27604
Phone: 919.832.5560
He's the specialist in Raleigh for electric bikes (and scooters) and would be a good starting point to explore an ebike in your city.

Allstarbike shop carries a couple of ebikes; however, more regular bikes.
Flythe Cyclery carries the Townie electric bikes; again more regular bikes
Triangle Glides focuses on a few of the A2B bikes but more on Segways

 

[JoePah]

NC has some strange eBike laws, and it explains why you don't see people riding them:

Basically you cannot ride your ebikes on any roads...Don't know if NC cops enforce this law.. Guess it depends what you look like!

http://www.evelo.com/north-carolina-state-electric-bike-laws-definition/

Definition of Electric Bike:
The state of North Carolina (NC) defines an electric bike as a bicycle with a small helper motor with less than 750W and a maximum speed of 25mph on flat surfaces. Riders must be at least 16 years of age.

Licensing and Registration:
The state of North Carolina does not allow registration of electric bikes.

Helmet Law:
Helmets are required for all riders.

Where to Ride:
Electric bicycles are permitted to ride on all public highways and roadways with a posted speed limit of less than 25mph, on sidewalks, in bike lanes and on bike paths. Operators of electric bikes must yield right-of-way to pedestrian and human powered devices.

Disclaimer:
Laws and policies can change at any time rendering the above information outdated and non-applicable.

 

[William Hemmingsen]

Where to Ride:
Electric bicycles are permitted to ride on all public highways and roadways with a posted speed limit of less than 25mph, on sidewalks, in bike lanes and on bike paths. Operators of electric bikes must yield right-of-way to pedestrian and human powered devices.

I saw this link, According to this, it looks like slow neighborhood road, sidewalks, and bike paths are allowed. But not roads with speeds over 25.

However other than this link, I can find nothing else that verifies this. I do not plan on riding on main roads, so that is no concern. But I do want to ride the greenway, as there are 27 miles starting 200ft from my house.

Ann,

Thanks I will call Rich.

Regards,

William

 

[William Hemmingsen]

Ok I spoke to Rich @ electric bike city. He has brought this up with his lawyer and here is what he said.

NC has no ebike specific laws. The lawyers opinion is that under NC law an ebike would be considered a motor vehicle. With that said, he has never heard of anyone ever getting hassled over an ebike. He also doubts authorities would even know an ebike if they saw one.

Recently there was a moped law requiring registration and tags, however I wouldn't expect a cop to mistake an ebike with a moped, but could happen.

So I guess the rule here is to stay under the radar and give the authorities no reason to question you.

William

 

[Ravi Kempaiah]

you could talk to NC folks @PowerMe and @MLWilcox ...

 

[PowerMe]

The cops here wouldn't recognize an ebike, especially if you were riding it just like a bike (and not like a rocket ship). Other bike riders occasionally notice of course, but there are no specific laws I'm aware of.

 

[Rich Sathoff]

Update to this blog. NC passed HB 959 that defines Electric Assisted Bicycles. Until this they would have considered Motor Vehicles and needed registration and insurance. Now they are basically same as standard bicycles. Don't know officially if they are legal on green-ways, but everybody we have sold to uses them on the trails and greenways with no problems.

 

[opimax]

I have family in the Raleigh area, I love NC's Green-ways , nice paths (class 3 owner) nervous but go anyway

 

[EriderM]

I recently emailed the NC DMV asking about registration. They stated I would not need to register my Stromer ST 2 S. Also, regular bicycles can be ridden on roads with speed limits up to 35 mph. Which covers most of my commute. I assume a little risk getting on a 40 mph road for about a mile. No issues. I also frequently pass regular bikes with no issue. I also obey all traffic laws, just like while driving my car. I ride as much as possible.

 

[Steve Barsby]

I am having trouble finding out anything about ebikes in NC. Does anyone know what the rules are in NC in regards to ebikes.

I live in Raleigh,NC and have never even seen an ebike here. The only ebikes I am aware of are the advertisements for ebike tours downtown.

I live in a neighborhood on the Neuse River Greenway. The rules say no motorized vehicles, but not sure if this applies to ebikes, because one of the ebike tour groups does a greenway tour (however no idea if they have special permission).

Anyone from the area that could shed some light? Rules? Perception? Haters? LOL

Thanks!

William

I just check NC law, William. The speed limit applies to speed without input from the cyclist. And it's 20mph unassisted on a level road. So what the law is saying, if one uses a throttle-controlled bike, 20 is the maximum it can drive the rider. On the other hand, there's no limit on the speed of a bike with PAS other than the road's speed limit.

There must be other reasons for so few e-bikes in NC.

I've just converted my road bike with a kit. I have gearing that will permit me to bike 40mph as long as I'm working along with the motor. And it's NEVER a good idea to ride on a sidewalk, regardless of the bike.

 

[EriderM]

http://www.ncleg.net/Sessions/2015/Bills/House/PDF/H959v6.pdf

This is the link to some changes that Went into effect 1 Oct 2016. It clearly defines ebike vs moped vs motor driven cycle. I interpret it to mean that my Spedelec is classified as a bicycle.

 

[BeachRider]

I started to ride ebikes on the beach/trails/state parks/main road 55mph posted limit (far right hand side ofcourse-emergency lane) and have not gotten in any trouble with the police. I often run across one of them on the 5miles stretch 55mph hwy and he didnt bother me at all.

But one occasion I was on the beach at a statepark and the park ranger was harassing me about not able to use it in the park. He obviously was not informed on the laws, making personal assumptions on the bike having a "motor" and thus fallen into the scooter/motorized catagory. I quickly straightened him up telling him to look up the new law, and the electric bicycles are now perfectly legal and NOT in the "motorized" catagory which refer to gas engine vehicles.

Not everyone is informed or knowledgable on the topic, most people are still ignorant and the haters will hate no matter what. But knowing the law on your side, nobody can mess with you...just ride responsibly