Inverness watches state e-bike push | Citrus County Chronicle

Electric bike riding has surged across the United States and so has the number of accidents. The city of Inverness has been considering options to alleviate safety concerns. They learned Tuesday that help from Florida’s legislature may be on the way.

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Last summer, the Inverness City Council debated whether the city should draft its own e-bike ordinance to rein in what some described as a “Wild West” on sidewalks and multi-use paths.

This week, City Manager Eric Williams told the council that the state may soon do much of that work for them.

“E-bike legislation, your prayers may be answered,” Williams said.

Williams pointed to CS/HB 243 and its Senate companion, SB 382, which are moving through the Legislature. The bills would establish statewide rules governing where and how electric bicycles operate, particularly around pedestrians.

“They deal primarily with rules and regulations and enforcement of e-bikes on things like sidewalks and roadways,” Williams said. “It remains to be seen exactly how some of these things will be enforceable, but they deal with speed limits, places in proximity to pedestrians.”

Under the House proposal, riders on shared pathways not adjacent to roadways, such as park trails, would be required to yield to pedestrians and give an audible signal before passing. On sidewalks or other pedestrian-designated areas, riders could not exceed 10 miles per hour when within 50 feet of a pedestrian. Violations would be treated as noncriminal traffic infractions.

The legislation would also create a temporary Electric Bicycle Safety Task Force within the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to study state law and recommend improvements aimed at reducing crashes and injuries. In addition, law enforcement agencies would be required to track detailed crash data involving e-bikes and report it to the state.

For Inverness, which has invested heavily in multi-modal connectivity and trails, Williams said the move is significant.

“Remember, these are the things that we’ve talked about, the frustrations with e-bikes of, why can’t we do this?” he said. “Well, you have to have enabling laws to be able to regulate it. And they have been sort of a Wild West thing for a while.”

In July 2025, Williams brought the council a packet prepared by the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office outlining the three classes of e-bikes and the patchwork of rules governing where they may operate. Council members at the time expressed concern about riders traveling at high speeds on sidewalks, where pedestrians often feel most vulnerable.

Councilwoman Linda Bega then called sidewalks “the scariest part,” noting that e-bikes can legally reach speeds of up to 28 miles per hour depending on class, while operators are not required to carry insurance or hold a driver license.

Williams cautioned this week that even if the bills pass, implementation will not be immediate or simple.

“I don’t want to create the idea that as soon as the gavel drops and it’s signed in July that we’re heading out and it’s going to be war with e-bikes,” he said. “It’s going to take some time to build the enforcement procedures and education behind it.”

He pointed to the 50-foot pedestrian buffer as an example.

“That seems reasonable,” Williams said. “But if you were to talk to a law enforcement officer, that’s probably like the most difficult thing to enforce. And if you talk to a lawyer, to go to court and prove and defend is, what’s your idea of 50 feet?”

Even so, Williams said, statewide standards are necessary for cities like Inverness, which previously explored whether to prohibit e-bikes on sidewalks through local code changes.

“I do think that it’s important that the state’s taken this step,” he said. “It’s necessary for organizations like ours that have so many areas that folks e-bike and use multi-modal connectivity to have these types of laws to fall back to.”

As the legislative session winds down, Williams said he plans to invite the city’s lobbyist, Andrew Khalell, to provide the council with a more detailed briefing on the bills’ final language and timeline.

For now, the city that once considered drafting its own rules is watching Tallahassee closely, waiting to see whether the state will draw clearer lines on the sidewalks.