E-Bike Legislation Update

If you have been following the trend of greatly increased e-bike sales and how the Bike-Walk Alliance of NH has been pushing NH e-bike legislation, you will be glad to learn the e-bike bill HB148 received unanimous approval from both the House and Senate Transportation Committees. A floor vote comes next but without any request for funding via a Fiscal Note the chances of enactment is very good. The bill will be in effect 60 days after passage so by this summer the State of NH should have good legislation in place concerning e-bikes.

The NH legislation follows the three-class model provided by People for Bikes. All three classifications (LSEBs, Low Speed Electric Bicycles) have electric motors that do not exceed 750 watts (1 HP) and cannot propel the bike over 20 MPH by the motor alone. The electric assist cuts-out at 20 MPH on Class 1 and 2 e-bikes while assistance is provided up to 28 MPH (45 KPM) on a Class 3 if the rider is pedaling. Restrictions may still be placed for areas and trails at the discretion of the owners or managers while the default usage guideline is that Class 1 and 2 e-bikes can be used anywhere a typical bicycle is allowed. E-bikes that are more powerful and faster than LSEBs are not even called “bicycles” by Federal or manufacturer definitions. They are “Out-of-Class Electric Vehicles” (OCEVs) – note the word “Vehicles” -- and fall into the OHRV category along with dirt bikes, ATVs, and UTV side-by-sides. They are not legal on roads, non-motorized rail trails, or mountain bike trails as they are effectively electric motorcycles with pedals that don’t have to be used. They are allowed on private lands, some parks, and trails / back roads designated for OHRV use.

Of course, identifying the various classes can be a challenge when all the LSEBs look much like conventional bicycles with a large water bottle or rear luggage rack. Enforcement of local regulations is another challenge between limited manpower and not being able to easily tell a Class 1, 2, or 3 apart from each other until the bikes display identification labels as required on sales made in 2020.

Bottom line, there is much education, documentation, and enforcement ahead in NH but HB148 sets the basis for our state to be the 13 th in the country to enact model e-bike legislation. For more info about e-bikes, please contact me or visit the BWANH web site at www.bwanh.org for a whitepaper / brief as used in support of the NH legislation.

Submitted by Dave Topham, BWANH Board member, dave@bwanh.org