California’s Assembly Bill 2346 will change e-bike usage

By Staff Writers Leina Ikeda, Audrey Tseng, & Matthew Zhang

E-bikes have emerged in recent years as a popular mode of transportation for students. Powered with electric motors, e-bikes are generally treated by state law as regular bikes, don’t require a license, and allow riders to travel with lower physical effort and at speeds of up to 28 mph. 

That growing popularity has also resulted in serious cycling fatalities in Fremont. Between 2014 and 2025, Fremont has reported eight fatal traffic collisions involving cyclists, some of which were on e-bikes. On August 25, Fremont Police Department responded to an 81-year-old man who injured his head from falling off his e-bike and died.  This event was Fremont’s seventh fatal traffic collision in 2026. 

Nationally, concerns about e-bike injuries have also grown. A 2024 UC San Francisco study found that head injuries from e-bike crashes increased by approximately 49 times in the US between 2017 and 2022. 

CA policymakers have responded to the increasing number of e-bike injuries with Assembly Bill (AB) 2346, which was passed on September 30. AB 2346  will mandate e-bikes to be equipped with a speedometer, a front lamp, and a rear red lamp, beginning in January 2029. It will also require distributors of e-bikes to recommend users under 16 years of age to not exceed 15 mph, and authorize local governments to set speed limits on bike paths and sidewalks, ranging from 10 to 20 mph, beginning in January 2027. Violations of e-bike speed limits set by local governments are generally considered infractions under the Vehicle Code and can be counted against a driver’s record, with the exception of the bill’s blanket 10 mph speed limit for e-bikes on the sidewalk.

Dozens of bikes line the racks at MSJ, and e-bikes constitute around a fifth of them. 

For Sophomore Ellie Choi, e-bikes add practicality to her daily commute to and from school. “You don’t sweat, and it’s just more convenient [when] you don’t have to rely on anyone to drive you,” Choi said.

Junior Daisy Lee relies on e-bikes for similar reasons, but also experienced the e-bikes’ risks first-hand. “Last time when I rode an e-bike, I stopped, and some car wanted to avoid me, so it stopped. But the car behind this car –– it crashed … I’m so sad about this,” Lee said.

AB 2346 will bring new e-bike regulations, but some students think it’s not enough. “[Fremont should] add a proper bike lane, [or] those … green bumpers that separate the bike lane from the road,” Choi said. “[The speed limit] really doesn’t make that big of a difference, and these laws aren’t going to be really enforceable.”

Lee believes that greater awareness of e-bike laws is important for keeping riders safe. “Nothing can be [entirely] safe … But if you follow the law and you don’t make trouble, I think [riding e-bikes] is safe,”  Lee said.

But there are more people affected by bike regulation than just the cyclists, Choi notes. “There are tons of times where students are in front of me while I’m trying to pass them, and they can’t really hear me,” she said. “I don’t blame them … [but] I might accidentally run them over.”

At MSJ, school administrators prioritize enforcing safety measures throughout campus, especially with e-bikes. “Every once in a while, … [a student] goes a little too fast on their e-bikes. Whether you have an e-bike, a scooter, or a traditional bike, you’re not allowed to ride anything on campus,” Assistant Principal Jenna Nightengale said. “It’s harder to catch up [to students riding e-bikes on campus] … because e-bikes obviously go faster than a traditional bike in most instances.”