Elgin City Council members will hold off on approving an ordinance governing e-bikes and similar devices until it’s known if the General Assembly passes statewide rules this spring.
However, in anticipation that the state might not act, city staff will start researching possible regulations and is to come back in June with a local proposal the council can discuss should pending legislation stall.
“Over the past several years, we have seen these devices become increasingly common on our streets and communities,” Elgin senior management analyst Giovanni Jungo told the council at a recent meeting.
State and local codes are outdated and don’t match the kinds of bikes and other equipment people are using today, Jungo said. The issue is trying to figure out how to incorporate them into the city’s transportation system, he said.
Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias’s office is working with Ride Illinois and legislators on a bill regulating the devices, Jungo said. It is to be discussed in the spring legislative session, he said.
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Giannoulias wants to see uniform rules for the whole state rather than the patchwork laws that have been adopted by communities, Jungo said.
The spring legislative season ends May 31, by which time it will be known if state regulations get passed.
Micro-mobility devices are small, personal transportation devices used for short trips, Jungo said. They include things like electric bicycles, skateboards, scooters and unicycles.
“A reason these devices have grown so quickly is because they are appealing, they can be more affordable than a car, they are convenient for a short distance and environmentally friendly for many people. And they are also just fun to use,” he said.
They “technically fall under motor vehicle laws, but they cannot be registered. They don’t have VIN numbers and lack required safety equipment,” Jungo said. “They sit in a legal gray area. Obviously, it’s creating a lot of confusion,” especially for law enforcement.
Elgin Police Department Cmdr. Scott Holmes said police enforcement prioritizes safety and community impact. The existing ordinance is broad and prohibits the devices on streets, sidewalks and bike paths, he said.
“Our focus is on behavior and safety,” Holmes said.
Officers give warning tickets and explain the ordinance to young riders or first-time offenders, he said. The idea is to get voluntary compliance.
“There are, obviously, situations where enforcement is necessary,” Holmes said. Those situations usually involve creating unsafe hazards for traffic or pedestrians and specific complaints, he said.
When police give out citations, it’s typically to adults, Holmes said. The penalty is a $100 fine and the device is impounded, he said.
Identifying and tracking citations and accidents involving the e-bikes and scooters is challenging because of the way the department catalogs those types of calls, he said.
Fourteen citations have been written since 2021, with nine of them being issued since 2025, Holmes said. Of the 10 crashes involving an injury, four were in 2025, according to data.
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Service calls come from around the city, with a small concentration occurring west of Randall Road, Holmes said.
Right now city staff is researching ordinances and reviewing the state’s proposed framework to pass a local law in case state rules are not passed this spring, he said. They cannot be implemented without council approval.
“There has obviously been an uptick of these devices out on the road,” Councilman Corey Dixon said at this week’s council meeting. “It’s not going to go away soon, especially with high gas prices. People are going to be leaning into this more.”
Dixon said he also would like to see the city do other things, like adding more bike lanes, to address the situation.
Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.