This article was updated April 23, 2026, to add that Harwood Heights and Norridge banned all e-bike use in public places.
No bicycling topic was as widely debated in 2025 as e-bikes.
E-bike use continued growing, and so did that of their cousins with bigger motors, “e-motos.” Many were speeding around and intimidating residents, and local governments responded with e-bike laws.
Except they had limited guidance from the state or federal government (only counties had established regulations for trails), and in fact they had no real grasp of all the kinds of bicycle-like vehicles that youths and adults alike were riding — to a great extent because manufacturers were selling them all with the “e-bike” label, whether they meant the state definition of one or not.
So the laws varied widely. Many were even rather creative. They created a patchwork of regulations even among neighboring suburbs.
By the second half of the year, more suburbs came to realize that the problem was more with e-motos than e-bikes. But many suburbs’ e-bike laws had been written well before the term “e-moto” became popular.
The earliest laws
Really, the new e-bike laws began before 2025. Lake Forest leaders dipped their toes in the water in October 2023 with an ordinance prohibiting e-bikes and e-scooters in its downtown.
In November 2024, however, Huntley made the first really strict e-bike law. It adopted an ordinance limiting e-bike use to those 16 and older unless those under 16 don’t use the motor, and allowing them on local paths again only if the motor isn’t used.
The Huntley law didn’t get much attention in the region, despite coverage from Shaw Local. New e-bike laws didn’t get much media attention in 2025 at first, either.
Burr Ridge, Deerfield, Glen Ellyn, Hinsdale and Streamwood added regulations that followed state law on e-bikes, reiterating they’re not allowed on sidewalks. Some also stepped up campaigns on the bikes with bigger motors. They weren’t called “e-motos” yet, but the towns declared they largely weren’t allowed, especially among youths.
Stricter e-bike laws emerge
Then in late April, the Roselle Park District enacted regulations saying only Class 1 e-bikes (up to 20 mph, no throttle) are allowed and riders must be 16 or older, contrary to state law that allows any age on Class 1 e-bikes.
The Village of Roselle at large followed in June by saying riders must be 16 if they want to actually use the motor, or else they’d have to pedal only.
“The top safety concern we have with e-bikes is younger riders operating them in an unsafe manner, and the use of motor-assisted speed is a big part of the problem,” Roselle Police Chief Rob Barreto said in a news release.
On June 10, the Schaumburg village board went further. It passed an ordinance requiring all e-bike riders to be at least 16 years old. That came after village leaders took some time to discuss how exactly any e-bike regulations would be enforced.
Mayor Tom Dailly told the Daily Herald the new regulations were an opportunity for greater education rather than vehicle pursuits and fines. “No matter what we do, enforcement is going to be difficult,” he said.
The enforcement question would come up repeatedly in other suburbs in the coming months. Many leaders said they’d emphasize education over punishment. Yet some police departments, including Schaumburg’s, soon issued citations, and fines could be as big as $1,000. Parents could be held liable, too.
The scuttlebutt around the suburbs grew. But it wasn’t until June 17 that e-bike laws made the Chicago TV news.
Driver’s licenses required, and more
That’s when Elk Grove Village passed its law requiring e-bike riders to have driver’s licenses (and allowing e-bikes on local paths only if the motor isn’t used). Mayor Craig Johnson later went on local radio to defend the measure.
“To operate <e-bikes> on a public roadway with 3,000-pound cars right next to you, you need to have some experience and age behind you,” he said on a segment on WBEZ Chicago.
Highland Park actually passed a driver’s-license requirement the day before, plus it blocked e-bike riders from local paths altogether.
More suburbs followed with the driver’s license requirement: Carol Stream, Morton Grove, Evergreen Park, Glencoe. Fox Lake also did and added a proof-of-insurance requirement. (Yes, auto insurers will gladly also insure e-bikes.)
Palatine decided to required a license, but at the last minute the city council acknowledged responsible younger and older riders by allowing 15-year-olds to ride with a learner’s permit and exempting riders 18 and over from the rule.
Other suburbs still imposed only age limits. Park Ridge set age 14 for Class 1 (20 mph, no throttle) and 2 (20 mph, with throttle) e-bikes. Hanover Park set 16 as the minimum, unless e-bike riders don’t use the motor.
Mount Prospect added an age 16 minimum for only Class 2 e-bikes (in addition to state law requiring that age for Class 3’s, which go up to 28 mph). Hoffman Estates made 16 the minimum age for all e-bikes.
Meanwhile, four suburbs outright banned e-bike use anywhere publicly: Glenview, Orland Park, Harwood Heights and Norridge.
‘Cool your jets’
Finally, suburbs began to heed Ride Illinois Executive Director Dave Simmons’ call to “cool your jets.” The advocacy group launched a campaign to distinguish e-bikes from e-motos, as the term for the latter took hold.
“We aim to eliminate confusion — and slow or stop the adoption of local ordinances — by clearly distinguishing between e-bikes and e-motos in the Illinois Vehicle Code,” the organization wrote in its Aug. 28 newsletter. “Progress is being made and our goal is to introduce a bill in the 2026 legislative session to officially and legally make this distinction.”
Rolling Meadows leaders were the first to listen. It passed an ordinance Sept. 9 deliberately following state law — allowing broad use of e-bikes. But e-motos are prohibited publicly. St. Charles did the same Oct. 6, though it imposed the 16 age limit on “low-speed gas bicycles.” Prospect Heights had done the same thing Sept. 25, but it limited the gas-powered bikes to streets, with a 20 mph speed limit.
The Vernon Hills Park District weighed in on Oct. 13 with its “Our Paths are for Pedals” campaign. It said only Class 1 e-bikes are allowed on its paths and trails. The leaders of Vernon Hills at large, however, were intentional in not imposing restrictions on e-bikes beyond state law.
“While some communities have worked to create their own municipal regulations, the Village is taking a more measured approach at this time,” an Aug. 14 notice said. “… Going forward, the Village will continue to work for overarching regulation developed at the State level to help guide all communities on these efforts.”
On Sept. 22, the Northwest Municipal Conference — leaders from 43 municipalities and one township mostly in the northwest suburbs and Lake County — met to discuss e-bike, e-scooter and e-moto laws in an effort to create “a more cohesive regulatory environment across the suburbs.”
But varying e-bike laws kept coming.
Another option in Arlington Heights
Arlington Heights had been considering a minimum age of 16 for all e-bike riders as soon as August, but after lobbying from adults and youths, trustees passed an ordinance allowing broad use.
The same night, Sept. 15, a 16-year-old Mount Prospect boy died after crashing his e-vehicle into a pickup truck at a neighborhood intersection in Arlington Heights.
By November, the Arlington Heights trustees were rethinking their new law.
They created requirements based not on the type of vehicle (e-bike vs. e-moto vs. e-scooter) but on speed. Anybody could ride any vehicles traveling less than 10 mph. But anybody riding anything going 10 to 28 mph must be 18, or 16 or 17 if they have a learner’s permit, and ride only on streets. Anything over 28 mph was not allowed anywhere publicly.
On the night they approved that measure, trustees adjusted the ordinance to go a little looser again.
“I’m concerned that there’s parts of the ordinance that are overly restrictive,” Trustee Wendy Dunnington said. “Micromobility devices offer individuals who can’t drive or choose not to drive a reliable, inexpensive mobility option.”
Devices going 10-28 mph could be used on local paths after all, as long as they kept at 15 mph or less. Then, with the help of local advocates, Dunnington proposed that the age restriction be removed altogether if riders complete Ride Illinois’ Bike Safety Quiz through the “silver” level.
The quiz had not been used as a sort of permit exam before, Ride Illinois’ Simmons said. Despite village staff and police leaders’ concerns about enforcement — would officers really have to check if young riders were carrying a certificate of completion for the quiz? — the village board passed all the new rules in a 5-3 vote.
Still varying in the end
Meanwhile, after a couple of meetings of discussion, the Des Plaines city council on Dec. 1 went with a law allowing broad use of e-bikes, no age restrictions beyond state law’s age 16 rule for Class 3’s. The same night, the Buffalo Grove village board also passed a law with no age limits, but it prohibited Class 2 and 3 e-bikes from village paths and parks.
Then Naperville on Dec. 2 imposed a minimum age of 16 for all e-bike riders effective Jan. 1.
Des Plaines, by the way, first had a helmet requirement in its ordinance, but the city council removed it in the end. Only some suburbs decided to require helmets, while a few others say officially that they’re “encouraged.” In the end it created a patchwork of safety gear regulations, too, for riders who may ride even among neighboring towns.
Now, many suburbs are looking to state lawmakers to create new laws specifically on “e-motos” — which are not addressed between e-bikes and larger motorized vehicles like motorcycles and even mop-eds.
But it remains to be seen whether they take up the matter, and whether suburbs that haven’t yet made their own laws will wait. Or, if the state does address e-motos, whether suburbs that have enacted strict laws will change course.
Before the holidays, Ride Illinois urged caution in making purchases in a webinar it hosted called “E-bikes, e-motos, and the Holidays: Know Before You Buy!” It also encouraged state lawmakers to “rein in retailers.” “Restrict e-motos from being advertised, sold, offered for sale, or labeled as e-bikes in Illinois,” a slide in the presentation said.
Disclaimer: I, the author, volunteer for Ride Illinois’ Fundraising and Membership Committee.
• See e-bike laws detailed town by town in this compilation.
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