Riders under 16 can no longer legally operate e-scooters, e-bikes or e-motorcycles in Bay Harbor Islands after the Town Council approved a new micromobility ordinance on Wednesday, July 29.

The ordinance also bans all riders, regardless of age, from using those vehicles on town sidewalks, according to an announcement on the town's website posted Friday, July 31.

The two provisions are straightforward: no one under 16 may operate any electric-powered scooter, bike or motorcycle within town limits, and no one may ride those devices on Bay Harbor Islands sidewalks.

The town has not disclosed the ordinance's effective date, fine amounts or enforcement details.

Part of a regional wave

Bay Harbor Islands is the latest South Florida municipality to pass its own micromobility rules after Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed Senate Bill 382 in June. That bill would have created statewide e-bike safety regulations, including a 10-mph speed limit near pedestrians and mandatory audible signals when passing.

Without state action, towns are writing their own rules. Sunny Isles Beach approved a nearly identical ordinance on July 21, also setting 16 as the minimum rider age and banning sidewalk use. Sunny Isles fines start at $250 for a first offense and rise to $500 for repeat violations.

The Village of Pinecrest launched e-bike safety training in May, establishing speed limits and fines for micromobility riders within village limits.

Why the focus on kids

Federal data backs the age restriction. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission found that children 14 and younger accounted for 36% of all micromobility injuries from 2017 to 2022, double their 18% share of the U.S. population. The CPSC also documented 233 micromobility-related deaths over that same period.

The problem is accelerating. E-scooter injuries nationally jumped from roughly 30,000 in 2020 to 118,485 in 2024, according to Campus Safety Magazine. Injuries among children under 14 doubled from 8,159 to 17,641 over the same span. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children under 16 not operate motorized or electric scooters.

Miami attorney Ira Leesfield, founder of Leesfield & Partners, described the regulatory vacuum in a July 31 article about the regional push for local ordinances. "This is chaos," Leesfield said. "If you go into any municipality on a Friday night, you'll see people doing wheelies, weaving in and out [of traffic]."

Bay Harbor Islands has not announced a public education campaign or grace period ahead of enforcement.