Bike (?) with Training Wheels

Question

Cornelia asked: Are children required to wear helmets while using training wheels? I think it is the right thing to do…others differ.

Answer

Children under 16 years of age are required to wear helmets.

s. 316.2065 – Bicycle Regulations

(d) A bicycle rider or passenger who is under 16 years of age must wear a bicycle helmet that is properly fitted and is fastened securely upon the passenger’s head by a strap and that meets the federal safety standard for bicycle helmets ….

Some might argue that a bicycle equipped with two additional training wheels is no longer a bicycle by the statutory definition since a bicycle has only two or three wheels.

s. 316.003 – Definitions

(2) Bicycle – Every vehicle propelled solely by human power, and every motorized bicycle propelled by a combination of human power ….having two tandem wheels, and including any device generally recognized as a bicycle though equipped with two front or two rear wheels.

Whether the addition of training wheels changes the nature of a bicycle is not determined in the statutes, but helmets are always recommended.