Originally Posted by
Veloteq
Federal law can, and often does, override state laws, e.g., matters of civil rights. With regard to motor vehicles, however, the states have the right to regulate traffic within their jurisdiction. The Federal law relating to low-speed electric bicycles deals with safety issues such as construction of the vehicle, not the operation of the electric bicycle nor where and where they may not be used. The Federal law with regard to the safety of e-bikes does supersede state laws unless the state law is intended to increase the safety of the vehicle. Under the Federal law the e-bike must comply with 16CFR Part 1512(b) for the general description of a low-speed electric bicycle, and then must comply with the rest of 16CFR Part 15 as it pertains to all classes of bicycles. The Federal law was intended to relieve the manufacturers of e-bikes from the need to comply with the stringent regulations of meeting FMVSS requirements for motor vehicles. A number of states, such as Nevada, recently, hold that since qualifying e-bikes are not motor vehicles under Federal law, that they are no longer subject to motor vehicle requirements and permit them to be operated without license, registration, or insurance. Massachusetts is not among the states that has adopted this rule.
Jim Wood
Veloteq
Houston, TX
Jim,
You're the only other e-bike enthusiast I've run into who understands that the federal definition only establishes which federal agency's safety standards are applied to ready-made e-bikes sold in the U.S.
Prior to 2001, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration asserted authority to impose moped/motorcycle safety standards on all ready-made electric bikes sold in the US. In 2001, the US Congress (in response to lobbying by major bicycle manufacturers) passed legislation (Public Law 107-319) that defined two categories of ready-made e-bikes for purposes of safety regulations--"low-powered" electric bicycles and other electric bicycles that don't fit this category. The term "low-powered" electric bicycles is defined as a bicycle with an electric motor of no more than 750W and speeds no more than 20 MPH. Those ready-made e-bikes that meet this definition only have to meet consumer bicycle safety standards set forth in regulations issued by the Consumer Product Safety Administration. Without this legislation, I suspect there'd not be many ready-made e-bikes sold in the US since major manufacturers build their e-bikes for the world market, meaning their e-bikes can't travel above the low speeds set by the EU and many Asian countries. At present, conversion kits don't get caught up in safety standard issues, but I expect that to change as ever more powerful hub motors get shipped from China.