Electric bikes, or e-bikes, are a common sight parked up and down Erie Street and East Avenue, one sign that Oak Park and River Forest High School students and faculty are no strangers to the sustainable commute option.
Users tout their convenience and speed. However, some experts urged caution after several recent e-bike accidents.
Pedal-assist and throttle-style e-bikes are a rapidly growing trend. According to Harvard Health Publishing, sales of e-bikes quadrupled between 2018 and 2022 to about 1.1 million. And their popularity is growing, with revenues projected to top $37 billion this year, according to Statista.
“One of my favorite things about riding my e-bike is just the feeling of going fast. The breeze is so nice,” said OPRF junior Liam Moder, who rides his e-bike to and from school daily. “It’s very easy and quick to get around and to be on time.”
“I like walking to work, but it takes so long,” said Lauren Arends, an OPRF special education teacher who lives a mile away from school grounds. Her e-bike provides a convenient, eco-friendly form of transportation. “When the weather is nice, I park it out by the cafeteria doors where people leave to go out for lunch.”
Along with advantages, e-bikes also come with risks. According to a 2024 study in the medical journal JAMA Network Open, between 2017 and 2022, emergency room visits resulting from e-bikes more than doubled, and e-scooters rose 45%.
A 16-year-old boy was killed in Arlington Heights on Sept. 16 after his e-bike crashed while going between 30 and 40 miles per hour into a pickup truck, according to NBC Chicago.
Concern about e-bike safety prompted the village of River Forest to update its bike ordinance in July to require front and rear lights on e-bikes and e-scooters, the Wednesday Journal reported.
At OPRF, an accident involving an OPRF student on an e-bike on school grounds in August prompted Director of Campus Safety Kristen Devitt to send an email to students and parents Aug. 22.
“The safety is definitely the biggest concern. And those bikes are heavier than other bikes, which means they can do more damage,” Devitt said.
The danger increases when these heavier vehicles are operated on sidewalks, where they’re not permitted to be ridden under Illinois law. Devitt specified in her notice that the Mall, located between the main building and the stadium and athletic fields, is considered a sidewalk.
Devitt agreed that e-bikes are a clean, efficient form of transportation, if used safely. E-bikes are “a better option than driving. Like, we don’t want all those cars,” Devitt said.
Devitt prioritizes education surrounding e-bike legislation before jumping to suppression of their use: “We really would like to educate people as much as we can so that they understand what their responsibilities are and to, you know, work with everybody to understand the safe place for them to park and where they can and can’t ride those things,” she said.
