m@Robertson
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
Holy crap small world!you know I have been wondering for a few months if you were the same MRobertson from LXF. and now it is confirmed. I am Mr. Incredible from LXF.
Right on!E-BIKE SPEED RESTRICTIONS (AGREE OR DISAGREE )
- Thread starter Alicia Margaret
- Start date
Right on!
PedalUma
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Petaluma, CA
In Texas a VJ is subject to regulation and the air is private property. In California it is the other way around.
scottsdalecommuter
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
That's really well said, I love that! Thanks for sharing. Story to illustrate: I was passed by a nice group of folks who appeared to be snowbirds on the Greenbelt today on e-bikes while I was on my lunch walk and they couldn't have been nicer waving and smiling and ringing their bells and saying on your left and riding at safe comfortable speeds. Perfect example of existing in harmony! No chance I would want them riding on the streets in bike lanes out here in Scottsdale.
Allan47.7339
Well-Known Member
I hope you can do better than that. Most drivers confuse "rules of the road" with local driving habits that are not actually legal. "I obey traffic laws" usually includes exceptions like speed limits, close passes, stop signs, turn signals, right turn on red without stopping or even slowing down, abrupt lane changes and ignoring control signs. We have a version of the Idaho stop law for bicycles that allows a bicycle to treat a stop sign like a yield sign. I joke that it's the same thing cars do except it's legal for bikes.
To keep it on topic, I agree with the us restrictions up to 28mph.
tomjasz
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Minnesnowta
2 MAC 10T, 2 BBS01, 2 MXUS HD & GD. 1 YOCH mid and one DD fatbike. All crank forward flat foot Frames except the POS fat bike.
elliot friedman
Active Member
SPEED LIMITS NOT CLASS LIMITS
Class 3 owner using common sense when riding.
Class 3 owner using common sense when riding.
Last edited:
BEC111
Well-Known Member
I agree. E-bike classes are useful for sales but are meaningless in the context of riding on most MUPs. Assuming pedal assist and no throttles on class 3 bikes and only ebikes that meet the US definition of no more that 750 watt motors, it takes quite a bit of effort to ride, pedal assisted, at 28 mph, let alone faster. On flat paths.
Speed capabilities are not the issue. Not motors nor classes. For most MUPs that have even light traffic, rational riders should know traveling at speed more that 3 times the that of other riders and wheeled users is dangerous. Around walkers, pets and children even slow cycling can be risky.
Personally, I think speed limits on MUPs, rail trails and so forth are appropriate, assuming limits and monitoring are for flats. Getting a speeding ticket for going downhill too fast would be ridiculous.
I chose a class 3 bike for riding on streets where I often ride as fast as I can as self defense. I don’t want to piss off too any drivers. On my local rail trail I usually ride at between 12 and 16 mph. Most of my analog cycling friends are comfortable in that range as are the majority of athletic riders. There are also many riders more comfortable at 8-10 mph. Young Uber-healthy road bike riders are often at 20+, frequently riding in pelotons. And folks pulling kids (and dogs) in trailers. And folks walking dogs on too long leashes. And folks on horseback. A 20 or 25 MPH speed limit on this trail would be a good thing. Depending on traffic and other conditions, that might be too fast, but slower limits would be completely ignored if traffic is light. Just like cars.
Enforcement would probably be impossible. I’ve seen the a bicycle riding cop once or twice. Mostly closer to the big city start of the trail. It‘s unlikely they were there for enforcement. More likely they use the trail as a shortcut to other community destinations. (The trail is often a shorter distance than the roads. Especially for cyclists.) There are trail watchers, but they’re volunteers whose mission is to help folks not to police them. Even my wealthy suburban region would have a problem funding speed limit enforcement officers.
mschwett
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
i agree with this; there is a wide range of speeds on the flat MUPs around here from strollers to pelotons. a fit rider can do 20+ on their acoustic road bike, as could a class 3 e-bike. the speed limit on the longest, busiest MUP i use (i avoid them whenever possible!) is 15mph, which seems reasonable to me if a little frustrating if there's a big tailwind. if there's a big tailwind, i'll readily admit to going 23-24mph, motor off, IF there's nobody in front of me. the trail is dead flat and straight with few if any intersections or reasons/opportunities to stop to the side.
i know several people who have gotten speeding tickets on bikes on this trail and a few nearby local streets, so while such enforcement seems quite misguided to me (how many cars were speeding at that time.....) it is completely possible.
i don't think the presence of speed limits should mean anything (regardless of weight or power) should classify as a bike - the two are separate issues, IMO. the same exists in the motor vehicle space where there are safety constraints on vehicle design as well as limits on the use of public resources like roadways. it's just the price we pay to share each other's infrastructure...
Last edited:
BEC111
Well-Known Member
“it's just the price we pay to share each other's infrastructure.”
Wait. The roads and bike trails and so forth weren‘t build just for me? !!!
Shocking!
mschwett
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
mschwett
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
Bicyclists face new speed limit on the Golden Gate Bridge starting Jan. 1
Beginning Jan. 1, people riding bikes on the Golden Gate Bridge must obey a new speed...
15mph, and all three classes of e-bikes explicitly allowed. personally i think it should have been 20 on the bike-only side - but that’s often my reaction to a speed limit, that it should have been a bit higher.
goldconch
Active Member
I'd like to think appropriate speed should be governed by context using grownup discretion. On a pedestrian-bike foot path shared with kids and dogs, everybody mounted on their bikes should be wary of the possibility of, and thoughtful towards, softer moving unmechanised hazards just around the line of sight.
On the streets, blending with harder moving traffic, I like to be going closer to surrounding pace, so that I am not seen to be impeding, and compelling the impatient to do something truly terrifying. In traffic, I feel much safer going >20mph on ebike than I used to on analog going <15mph, "obstructing" traffic.
That said, there are some nearly-silent fully-electrified mopeds, without hint of pedals, indicators, plates, or insurance doing 50mph plus, weaving in and out of traffic, and those are coin toss crazy [where coin toss = 50% joyous fun, vs. 50% probability of extreme injury, paralysis, or death].
On the streets, blending with harder moving traffic, I like to be going closer to surrounding pace, so that I am not seen to be impeding, and compelling the impatient to do something truly terrifying. In traffic, I feel much safer going >20mph on ebike than I used to on analog going <15mph, "obstructing" traffic.
That said, there are some nearly-silent fully-electrified mopeds, without hint of pedals, indicators, plates, or insurance doing 50mph plus, weaving in and out of traffic, and those are coin toss crazy [where coin toss = 50% joyous fun, vs. 50% probability of extreme injury, paralysis, or death].
Similar threads
