Police Harassment

ramg1967

ramg1967

Member
Hello Everyone,

I have a ebike (Volt Bike). I use the bike for work and grocery shopping. Summer has started and police harassment is too much. They simply stop me and ask why, I am not wearing helmet even though, I am riding and pedaling at a speed of less than 20 kms even though the bike can reach 32 kms. I have seen regular bike riders going faster than me yet the police will stop me for helmet. What is the road rules in Ontario?

I googled and checked few govt sites. It mentions helmet is required for children under 18 years of age. Is this correct or, I am wrong? I don't want to argue with the police and get a ticket. Appreciate your response.

Thanks

Ram
 
You will receive zero support or sympathy on this forum.
Do you drive without a seatbelt?
If you crash on your ebike do you want to be brain damaged and become a carrot brain?
Consider deleting your post because no one will take your side, regardless of regulation.
 
George sends helmets with all volt bikes. I wear mine every time I go out for the simple reason an E bike goes a lot faster.
 
Jeez, helmet police? Sadly lots of data indicates we miss 50% of the likely protection needed by wearing these little beanies on the top of our heads. And before we get to critical, how many of us replace our helmet if dropped, or every 5 years.
 
Yes I did get the helmet with the bike. Since, I was not using it, I gave it to my friend's daughter for bike riding.
 
ramg1967 said:
Yes I did get the helmet with the bike. Since, I was not using it, I gave it to my friend's daughter for bike riding.
Click to expand...
I grew up in the 60's/70's and people didn't even think of wearing helmets. Kids did get hurt, but I don't even remember when helmets showed up in sporting goods stores.

I did have a mini bike very young and my mother insisted I have a helmet. "If it's good enough for Evil Knievel...". My father got a hardhat and safety glasses from work and strapped them on me. Boy did I look like a dork!! I really doubt the hardhat would have helped, but the seed was planted. I've owned motorcycles and bicycles ever since and have worn helmets for riding 2 wheels, my entire adult life. Just like seatbelts, you get used to it and it feels strange without it after awhile.

Go to a store and try on a few quality helmets. Buy one that's really comfortable, one with plenty of airflow. You won't regret it. The cost can be high for something you never want to need, but the upside can be immeasurable.

Enjoy your new bike!
 
I went head first into a fence post at 22 mph and the helmet I was wearing most likely saved my life. I still fractured 3 cervical vertebrae so just getting back on a bike after 8 months. I rode bikes when I was young without a helmet and even a motorcycle for many years and now I'm probably never going to feel OK riding without one again. I just never thought I'd hit my head like that but it does happen.
 
Why aren’t any of you wearing a helmet when driving/walking or being outdoors ?? I mean, just b/c there isn’t a law for it should not prevent you from exercising common sense and good judgement.

There are plenty of scientific studies that show that if a car driver or passengers were wearing helmets the outcome would have been a lot better.
Same for pedestrians. I remember a night when my cat jump on me and made a small scratch on my temple , have i been wearing a helmet i couldn’t have slept but no scratch either ..

WEAR YOUR HELMET WHEN YOU LEAVE HOME.
Stay safe and protected.
Either that or take chance....a law should be passed. Just like racecar drivers, construction crews, nasa astronauts and figher pilots wear helmets , why shouldn’t pedestrians and all car passengers have to wear one too ?? Is it no risk in this activities ? Is it not fashionable ? Is a big medical bill very fashionable and cool ?

You don’t like this idea but Are you saying that the RISK IS ZERO ? Is not.
 
Ebiker01 said:
Why aren’t any of you wearing a helmet when driving/walking or being outdoors ?? I mean, just b/c there isn’t a law for it should not prevent you from exercising common sense and good judgement.

There are plenty of scientific studies that show that if a car driver or passengers were wearing helmets the outcome would have been a lot better.
Same for pedestrians. I remember a night when my cat jump on me and made a small scratch on my temple , have i been wearing a helmet i couldn’t have slept but no scratch either ..

WEAR YOUR HELMET WHEN YOU LEAVE HOME.
Stay safe and protected.
Either that or take chance....a law should be passed. Just like racecar drivers, construction crews, nasa astronauts and figher pilots wear helmets , why shouldn’t pedestrians and all car passengers have to wear one too ?? Is it no risk in this activities ? Is it not fashionable ? Is a big medical bill very fashionable and cool ?

You don’t like this idea but Are you saying that the RISK IS ZERO ? Is not.
Click to expand...
Strawman arguement. Disingenuous and not worth debating.

I don't support helmet laws for adults.
 
I don't disagree with the law but it should be 2 way street. If an adult does not want to wear and take the risk then the law should not interfere like the way the system is setup in United States. Asking pedestrians to wear helmet is too much. Not worth debating.

Anyway, I have taken everybody's input and will get a helmet for the future,
 
Marci jo said:
You will receive zero support or sympathy on this forum.
Do you drive without a seatbelt?
If you crash on your ebike do you want to be brain damaged and become a carrot brain?
Consider deleting your post because no one will take your side, regardless of regulation.
Click to expand...

Wow, Marci! I appreciate your position and the passion you have for it, but please remember you don’t actually speak for all forum members here; not every member here is guaranteed to share your opinion.
 
There’s a very good reason most forums where safety gear is a part of the hobby BANS helmet discussions. Invariably someone can’t play nice, throws some sand and the discussion degenerates to a playground sandbox mentality. Come on. We can do this.
 
I think in the end a more constructive path forward would be to advocate for better bicycle safety rather than get wrapped around a helmet argument.

All of the evidence is that improved bicycle infrastructure saves lives, mostly of cyclists. I see no rational reason that Americans should tolerate approximately 750-1000 cyclist deaths per year and should not strive to reduce that number. Freedom to travel is a basic human right and it isn't reasonable to expect that people put their warface on to go the market.

There is a lot of stuff that gets circulated about "the war on cars." Hell yes it is a war and cyclists are the casualties.
 
The OP didn't realize helmets are required for adults on ebikes in Ontario. As soon as he was shown a link to the law in Ontario he said he'd get a helmet. As an adult, if the law was like it is in many places, it would be up to him, and no one else, whether to wear a helmet. I, like probably most of us, have my opinion on helmets, but I don't live or ride in Ontario and I'm not the boss of anyone else.

Thread drift is inevitable, but the original question was 'what are the rules in Ontario?', not whether a helmet is a good idea.

TT
 
Marci jo said:
You will receive zero support or sympathy on this forum.
Do you drive without a seatbelt?
If you crash on your ebike do you want to be brain damaged and become a carrot brain?
Consider deleting your post because no one will take your side, regardless of regulation.
Click to expand...
Not true. There has been plenty of discussion about this, and people take both sides. Just do a search on "helmet" and see how many threads it pops up in.

For my two cents, here's an article from the Bike Snob, a noted doubter of helmet usefulness.

Oh, and BTW, @Tars Tarkas is absolutely correct, and I'm ignoring him/her anyway. LOL.
 
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