Commission discusses e-bike safety and trail enforcement; asks staff to return with options

Commissioners and city staff on July 24 reviewed concerns about electric bicycles (e-bikes) on the city’s trails and roads, heard from a sheriff’s deputy about enforcement limits, and asked staff to return with researched options for the commission and City Council.

Christian (city staff) introduced the item and said the association had submitted a letter noting an incident in which an e-bike spooked a horse and a rider fell. He noted that Rolling Hills Estates’ municipal code bars unauthorized motor vehicles and bicycles from horseback‑riding trails and that the city’s code — cited in the packet as a local provision identified in the report — already contains relevant language.

Deputy (sheriff) explained enforcement limits: deputies can enforce municipal code violations if the act is observed, but catching an e-bike rider on a trail can be difficult because responding deputies often cannot reach the trail quickly and enforcement ordinarily requires witnessing the violation. The deputy said class 3 e-bikes (higher-speed models) are commonly disallowed on trails in other cities; he described a broader county and state conversation about classification and enforcement, and said education and partnership with schools had been part of other cities’ responses.

Commission discussion and direction: Commissioners and staff discussed several potential approaches: an education campaign for residents and youth, increased mounted posse or ranger presence on trails, barriers at gatehouse pedestrian bypasses to curb gate-circumvention, targeted camera evidence for complaint intake, and exploring whether municipal code could be amended to add enforcement teeth (fines, administrative citations or impound provisions) similar to neighboring cities. Commissioners asked staff to dig deeper and return with options and recommended that staff notify the City Council the commission is exploring the issue.

Public comment: A resident who said she spoke with the horse rider who fell described the rider as shaken and said the association has taken immediate steps—temporary barriers and plans to install a swinging gate and extended fence at one neighborhood gate—to limit bypassing of gates by nonresidents on e-bikes.

Next steps: Staff agreed to research model ordinances, enforcement pathways, education programs used by neighboring cities and the Palos Verdes Unified School District, and report back at a subsequent meeting with recommended options and possible legislative updates.