Midway council advances motorized-vehicle draft to police for review, asks staff to refine language

The Midway City Council voted unanimously to send a streamlined draft ordinance on motorized vehicles and electric bicycles to the city’s police department for review and to authorize staff to make specific drafting changes before returning it to the council.

Staff described Ordinance 2024-13 as a simplified, one‑page approach intended to supplement existing state law by clarifying helmet expectations, speed/manner enforcement and a catch-all list of prohibited uses the council could impose locally. "The idea was can I make this a lot easier that it fits on one page," the presenter said when introducing the draft.

Council members raised several drafting and enforcement issues during discussion: whether the draft’s “public property” phrasing would be interpreted to allow riding on sidewalks and trails; how to handle passenger limits (councilors suggested focusing on ‘‘number and manner’’ rather than only passenger count); the limits of municipal authority versus state law for different classes of electric bikes and other devices; and appropriate enforcement tools, including warnings, fines under the city fee schedule and vehicle impoundment. Staff advised that state law already differentiates e-bike classes and that the city is constrained by those distinctions, so the draft must be carefully worded.

The council also discussed juvenile enforcement and whether requiring parental involvement (for example, parents retrieving impounded vehicles) is an effective deterrent — an approach used in other jurisdictions that the council said merited consideration.

The motion the council approved directed staff to make the drafting changes discussed (including clarifying "number and manner" and referencing "allowed motorized vehicles") and to forward the draft to the police for written feedback. "If they're okay with it, we're okay," one councilmember said about moving forward on staff recommendations. If police propose substantive changes, staff will return the draft to council for further consideration; if police approve the language, staff were authorized to finalize it for implementation.

The ordinance remains at the draft stage pending law-enforcement feedback and any final language edits by staff. Councilmembers emphasized the need to align any local rules with state law and to produce clear signage and enforcement guidance if the city moves forward with location-specific prohibitions (for example, certain trails or sections of Town Square).