HOLLAND, MI (WHTC-AM/FM, Sept. 29, 2026) – The growing popularity of electric-powered bicycles and scooters has heightened safety concerns for riders and pedestrians.
On Tuesday, Triple A of Michigan disclosed results of a Consumer Pulse online survey among 400 state residents, taken this past April. It found that more than half of adults have seen children riding e-bikes or e-scooters without helmets, while over three quarters of them support helmet requirements for those riders. Several Detroit area communities and schools have considered banning, or already have banned, such vehicles’ use by youths due to safety concerns.
A week ago, House Republican Brad Slagh and Democrat Veronica Paiz of Harper Woods introduced a pair of bills which would put electric mopeds and motorcycles under the same guidelines as similar gas-powered vehicles, along with requiring e-bikes and its batteries meeting specified safety standards. Slagh, a fourth-term lawmaker from Zeeland Township, believes these changes would address growing safety concerns without restricting the proper use of e-bikes for transportation, recreation, and mobility.
However, Slagh admits that House Bills 6339 and 6340 may not reach the governor’s desk before year’s end, meaning they would need to be reintroduced when a new legislative session begins in January.
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