By Sara Beth Williams–
The San Juan Unified School District recently updated its policies on e-bike and other forms of e-transportation, approving a resolution during a June Board Meeting to ban all Class 3 E-bikes from their campuses.
The board also chose to ban Class 2 e-bikes–those that have a throttle and can go up to 20 miles per hour–from all elementary, middle and K-8 schools, as children need either a permanent or provisional license to be able to ride Class 2 e-bikes. The new regulations go into effect on Oct. 1, giving the district time to educate to families regarding the new policy enforcement, officials said.
The Board of Education first began discussing the topic of e-bikes and other forms of e-transportation such as e-scooters and e-skateboards in March at the request of Board president Tanya Kravchuk. Board members agreed that, as a baseline, the laws on the books in California regarding e-bikes and e-scooters need to be followed.
After discussion in March, the San Juan Unified School District then began community outreach, issuing surveys to gather feedback from community members within the district, particularly regarding whether a ban on e-transportation would significantly impact the ability for students to get to school.
In June, the district returned with community feedback and after more discussion, the Board unanimously agreed that banning Class 3 e-bikes completely, and banning Class 2 e-bikes from elementary, middle and K-8 campuses was the appropriate policy because it is the law.
When the concern of how things would be enforced was brought up, Board Vice President Ben Avey said if a child who is 12 years old drives onto a middle school campus in a Honda Civic, staff would have no choice but to intervene.
Following the approval of the new e-bike polices, the San Juan Unified School District partnered with the Citrus Heights Police Department to host two e-bike safety courses at Mesa Verde High School, however, the courses were canceled a week before, with no new date given.
Prior to the cancellation of the safety courses, the Citrus Heights Police Department underwent a restructuring, which resulted in some layoffs of non-sworn staff, and the dissolution of the department’s dedicated traffic unit.
“We are disappointed by the need to cancel July’s education event and are actively working to identify opportunities for our families,” the district said in a statement this week, adding that they are “exploring future opportunities” to offer e-bike safety courses in partnership with other community agencies.
Citrus Heights Police echoed the district, saying that the department will continue sharing e-bike safety information through social media channels, though no in-person courses are currently planned.
E-bikes have become a problem throughout public places and business corridors throughout the city with multiple residents, business owners, and employees sharing both online and to The Sentinel that minors on e-bikes regularly ride in parking lots, weave in front of pedestrians and drivers, and even ride e-bikes in the middle of street traffic with disregard for rules of the road.
Avey said in March while traveling to his children’s school to drop them off for the day, his wife saw a dozen e-bike riders violate road safety rules, such as riding across streets in front of vehicles in traffic, not stopping at stop signs, and more.
A minor on an e-bike, without a helmet on, was observed traveling down a busy neighborhood street this week at 25 miles per hour, riding through two stop signs, without regard to whether other cars were stopped and waiting.
During and following community workshops regarding a proposed new extension project for the Arcade Cripple Creek multi-use trail, residents complained to the city regarding the “significant” increase in the use of e-bikes on multi-use trails. Citrus Heights Senior Civil Engineer Daniel Kehrer acknowledged the concern, and said in an email that the Police Department’s Problem Oriented Policing (POP) Unit is currently working on formalizing a trail use ordinance to improve their enforcement capabilities.
“It is currently illegal to use a private motorcycle or dirt-bike on our trail network and the new ordinance will provide a maximum speed limit and provide clarifications on E-bike and E-scooter restrictions,” Kehrer said in an email to residents who were expressing concerns.
Options for transportation
During the Board meetings both in March and in June, board members voiced concerns about families who might not have alternative forms of transportation. District staff said they were working on partnering with schools in the district to help provide traditional bikes to students in need, however, the district did not identify any local schools in Citrus Heights in their discussion.
“San Juan Unified has long worked to provide education and resources in safe walk and bike to school practices, including partnering with community organizations to provide bicycles and safety equipment when available. Public transportation and carpooling are popular options for families as other alternatives, depending on specific family and student needs,” the district said.
The Sacramento Regional Transit District voted in 2019 to allow all students from kindergarten through the age of 18 to ride for free in Sacramento County. Students attending any school can obtain a free ridership pass from Sacramento County Public Libraries, as well as from their home school’s front office at the beginning of each year.
What can families expect
“As the school year begins, families can expect continued communication about the district’s updated e-transportation policy,” the district said, including reminders of the requirements and expectations for students who are riding e-bikes or other e-transportation to school. The e-transportation board policy banning Class 3 on all campuses and Class 2 for TK-8th grade campuses will go into effect Oct. 1.
“We encourage families to review the policy with their students and ensure they are riding safely and legally,” the district said.
While the district is responsible for enforcing policies on school campuses, traffic enforcement on public streets is the responsibility of local law enforcement agencies, the district said.
“We will continue to partner with our local law enforcement partners, including the Citrus Heights Police Department…on education and outreach efforts as opportunities arise,” the district said.
Citrus Heights Police emphasized in a statement that officers will continue to respond to school-area safety concerns based on call priority and available resources, and the department’s investigation Services will continue coordinating with the school district’s Safe Schools team.
For further information on the school district’s updated e-transportation policy, visit the district’s website.
