ORLANDO, Fla. — Orange County has new rules in place for how people can use e-scooters and e-bikes in the county. The new ordinance includes speed limits, fines, and the authority to impound the vehicles if needed.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office sent Spectrum News the following statement about how it will implement and enforce the new ordinance”
“The Orange County Sheriff’s Office is committed to ensuring safety on our sidewalks, shared paths and roadways. Above all else, we want our residents and visitors to be familiar with the ordinance so they can be safe and keep their kids safe. We began posting information about the ordinance upon its approval Tuesday night and will continue with the public education campaign. We believe that many people just don’t know the rules for operating micro mobility devices, and with some education and warnings, we may be able to change behavior.”
Brittany Wilson knows about the dangers e-bikes and e-scooters can bring to our roadways. She said that in May, her daughter was riding an e-scooter home from school when an e-bike rider struck her, then sped away.
“When she fell, she sustained so many injuries that we had to rush her to the emergency room, actually two different emergency rooms,” said Wilson.
Wilson said her daughter walked away with a laceration to her wrist, a knee injury, and is still being treated by a chiropractor almost five months later. Wilson believes Orange County’s new ordinance is a good start toward safer roads.
The ordinance sets a 10 mile per hour speed limit for e-bike and e-scooters on all sidewalks and shared-use paths, and it sets a 20 mile per hour speed limit for other facilities. Commissioner Mike Crabb worked 30 years with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, and he helped write the new rules.
“We’re dealing with young folks that don’t have the experience, so they don’t know the rules of the road,” Crabb said. “They’re riding in the road. They don’t know they’re supposed to stop at a stop sign. They don’t know they’re supposed to watch out for pedestrians.”
Crabb said it will be up to the Sheriff’s Office to enforce the new ordinance, and there will be challenges.
“I think the challenge, really, to be honest with you, is going to be volume. There’s gonna be more than they’ll be able to handle at first,” he said.
Crabb likes the fact that the ordinance gives deputies flexibility on how they can handle each offense.
“I wanted them to have options that we didn’t have to automatically write a ticket,” he said.
Crabb said warnings can help educate young riders and parents about the new rules, but deputies can issue $100 citations if they need to.
Wilson hopes Orange County will work with surrounding areas to set the same rules everywhere.
“Our community needs to come up with across all county lines the same clear regulations, rules, so that it’s understood among parents, students and community residents,” she said.
Many local leaders hope state lawmakers in Tallahassee will pass a uniform statewide law to regulate e-scooters and e-bikes in 2027.