Motorized Bicycles on Bike Paths

Question

Paul asked:  I own an electric bike that meets all the requirements to be classified a bicycle under s. 316.003(2), but the West Palm Beach police tell me that I am not allowed to ride it on City park bicycle trails/paths. Does the City have an ordnance prohibiting motorized bicycles on park trails?

Answer

It is against state law to operate any vehicle under anything other than human power on a sidewalk or bike path.

http://flbikelaw.org/2010/04/motor-vehicles-on-sidewalks/

Please see:

7 Comments on “Motorized Bicycles on Bike Paths

  1. Thanks for the responses, eventhough it was not what I wanted to hear. I am 66 years old with 2 plastic valves in my heart and a pacemaker and the electric bike made it possible for me go to places in the parks I could not reach on my own.

    Ride safely

    Paul C

    Ride

  2. You can always get a mobility scooter… Those kinds of things ARE allowed on bike paths..
    I live in West Palm Beach too.. Maybe we can meet up and you can see my bicycleand I could take a look at yours…

    Let me know…

  3. On a somewhat related note, sadly it isn’t too uncommon to see people riding scooters (not mopeds/hybrid bikes) but solely motorized scooters (with license plates) on The Pinellas Trail. One of the last one’s that I encountered said that he was doing so because it was “safer” than riding across the bridge with the “higher speed traffic.” While I can understand his concerns, I guess he failed to consider that he was putting the users of the trail in the same danger that he was trying to avoid.

    He even went on to justify his riding his scooter on the trail because he has been seen by the police and they’ve never stopped him. I tried to explain to him that just because the police were failing to do their job that doesn’t make his actions right.

    If he hadn’t been leaving the trail when I encountered him, I would have called the police on him. A short while later I encountered another person (two actually) riding another scooter on the trail. Having cut across the grass between the parking lot of Walmart and the trail. For that one I did pull over and called the police using the non-emergency number.

  4. Question: Does this apply to EVERYONE? Cause apparently, security guards, and officers use these paths, mostly at night to catch people traveling shortcuts…

  5. s. 316.2074 – All-terrain Vehicles
    (7) An all-terrain vehicle having four wheels may be used by law enforcement officers on public roads within public lands while in the course and scope of their duties.
    A bike path is a “public road.”

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