Isle of Palms committee weighs ban, registration to curb e‑bike risks on shared path

A public safety committee meeting on July 7 in Isle of Palms centered on whether the city’s shared-use path is safe for e‑bikes and pedestrians.

At the meeting a resident who presented photos and research urged the committee to send an ordinance to the city council banning e‑bikes from the path, arguing that the narrow 5½‑ to 8‑foot sections cannot safely accommodate walkers, runners, strollers and faster electric bicycles. “The rapid growth of e bike use has created a challenge for communities that built shared use paths before electric bicycles became common,” the resident said, pointing to national guidance that recommends 10–14 feet for multipurpose paths.

Why it matters: committee members said the issue affects public safety, enforcement workload and the island’s infrastructure choices as the path nears completion. The committee’s short‑term plan is to install 'no motorized vehicles' signage along Waterway Boulevard before the ribbon cutting; longer‑term options discussed included requiring visible city registration stickers and considering whether an ordinance is legally feasible under state law.

Police and enforcement perspective: the police chief told the committee South Carolina statute treats 'electric assist' bicycles as bicycles and does not adopt the federal three‑class taxonomy, which complicates local attempts to separate e‑bike types. The chief also noted the department had towed two e‑bikes this year for unsafe operation and described limitations in determining a device’s motor rating in the field. “We don’t recognize in South Carolina the different classes,” the chief said. He added that manufacturers are required to label the device and that altering a bike can change its legal classification.

Registration and identification: members discussed a registration permit with visible stickers as a practical enforcement tool, though staff warned that if the statute treats e‑bikes as bicycles the city would face the prospect of registering all bicycles rather than just motor‑assisted devices. A committee member said registration could make it easier to spot unregistered or improperly modified devices.

Next steps: the chair and staff agreed to move forward with the planned signs and keep registration and enforceability on the committee agenda for follow up. Staff reported having submitted an initial encroachment request for signage and said the path construction is expected to be finished in mid‑September, giving time to place signage before the ribbon cutting.

The discussion combined public safety concerns from residents with legal and operational constraints raised by staff; the committee did not adopt an ordinance at the meeting but directed staff to continue work and return with proposals.