VENTNOR – The new eBike law signed by outgoing Gov. Phil Murphy this week will make it easier for local police to enforce the city’s eBike ban on the boardwalk, Mayor Tim Kriebel said.
“I support the proposed regulations, which are intended to improve safety for riders and pedestrians both on the boardwalk and throughout our streets,” Kriebel said.
The city has had several meetings over the last few years to discuss its ban on three classes of eBikes – pedal assist, throttle and street-legal electric bikes – on the boardwalk. During meetings, senior citizens said they need pedal assist to enjoy exercise on the boardwalk where it is safer to ride.
However, the narrow residential boardwalk in Ventnor is not like the Atlantic City Boardwalk which is much wider and has commercial establishments and casinos. Citing safety concerns, Kriebel said the city does not allow motorized bicycles on the boardwalk, which is difficult for local police to enforce.
“Our enforcement challenges tend to increase significantly during the summer months when our population swells, which is why we are looking to add more summer special officers,” he said.
In an effort to keep pedestrians safe, the city has hired special officers to patrol the boardwalk and ask riders to leave at the next available street. The city also posted an electric sign at the city’s border with Atlantic City alerting riders entering Ventnor about the city’s ban.
“They simply move too fast, as much as 25-miles-per-hour. On our boardwalk people are shoulder-to-shoulder,” he said.
Because the Ventnor boardwalk is in a residential neighborhood, people of all ages, including many senior citizens, use the boardwalk for its intended purpose – walking. Additionally, beachgoers cross the boardwalk to get to the beach, often with children, carts and surfboards in hand, making it even more dangerous to cross.
Kriebel said over the past few years, many locals have turned to eBikes to commute to their jobs in Atlantic City and like to ride on the boardwalk instead of Atlantic Avenue because they feel it is safer and quicker.
The new law classifies all types of eBikes as motor bikes and requires riders to have motor bicycle licenses, registration and insurance within six months.
The law follows a series of fatal crashes involving e-bike riders last year, including one that left a 13-year-old boy in Scotch Plains dead and another involving a 14-year-old boy who was killed in a collision with a car in Somers Point. Murphy said the law would prevent such tragedies from occurring.
“The strengthening of the legislation should help by providing clearer rules and, hopefully, allow for stricter and more consistent enforcement,” said Kriebel, who is also Ventnor’s Commissioner of Public Safety. “The updates establish fines ($50), and set clear age limits, including prohibiting anyone under 15 from operating motorized bicycles or scooters. Overall, these changes are intended to improve safe operation, which makes sense to me.”
Some eBike advocates say the law goes too far and will hamper mobility, especially for those who are elderly or infirm. Others just don’t like the government telling them what they can do.
The bill was heavily opposed by transportation groups and bike advocates. They called the legislation too restrictive for everyday e-bike riders and said it would disproportionately harm immigrant and low-income riders who rely on them for work.
Copyright Fideri News Network 2026
