Arizona lawmaker moves to curb speeding e-bike, electric scooter riders

PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Arizona streets and trails are seeing a surge of new traffic: e-bikes and electric scooters.

As the devices zip through neighborhoods at higher speeds, injuries linked to them are climbing, and state lawmakers now want to slow riders down.

Doctors say crashes involving e-bikes and scooters are becoming more violent. One state senator believes capping speeds could steer riders toward safer ground.

“They’re sleek, they’re fast and they’re everywhere,” one official said. “All of the e-bikes can easily go above 20 miles an hour. Some of them can go up to 40 miles an hour.”

That potential for speed pushed Sen. John Kavanagh, a Republican from Scottsdale, to propose a new bill at the state Capitol.

“What we really need is a maximum speed limit on sidewalks and multi-us