New E-Bike and E-Moto Regulations in KCMO: Two Steps Forward, One Step Back

By Rayan Makarem, Director of Policy and Advocacy

A new KCMO law addresses youth on dangerous and illegal e-motos, provides legal protection for safe electric bicycles, but also imposes speed limits on adults riding legal e-bikes in KCMO bike lanes.

The Kansas City, Missouri City Council formally approved Ordinance 260508, implementing a new set of regulations for electric mobility devices across the city. It is based on a regional model mobility policy developed through a multi-jurisdictional working group co-led by the Mid-America Regional Council (MARC) and the Johnson County Health Department, with the participation of BikeWalkKC. 

The KCMO ordinance is, on balance, a meaningful step forward for safe and consistent e-mobility regulation. However, KCMO city council included two  modifications that may undermine progress in ways that deserve serious public attention.

The Positives: Why this ordinance matters

The most important thing this ordinance does is draw clear, meaningful distinctions between different types of electric mobility devices, distinctions that matter enormously for safety, enforcement, and appropriate use of our streets, bike lanes, and trails.

Electric bicycles are defined according to the three existing federal classes:

• Class 1 e-bikes provide pedal-assist only, with motor assistance cutting off at 20 mph.
• Class 2 e-bikes include a throttle and also cut off at 20 mph.
• Class 3 e-bikes provide pedal-assist up to 28 mph, at which point the motor disengages.

Critically, an e-bike is still a bicycle: it has pedals, and the motor only supplements human power. For all three classes, the battery assistance stops at the class’s maximum speed. This is not a technicality. It is the defining feature that makes e-bikes fundamentally different from e-motos.

Electric motorcycles, by contrast, are motorcycles. The ordinance aligns with state law,  requiring a minimum age of 16 and a valid driver’s license to operate them. They have no place on sidewalks, bike lanes, or trails, and they should not be marketed to children.

The KCMO ordinance also requires retail signage that prevents misleading marketing of electric devices to consumers, particularly parents shopping for their children. This is a practical, targeted provision that addresses a real problem. Many powerful electric devices that are legally motorcycles have been marketed in ways that make them appear to be toys or safe options for kids.

Paired with a framework for educational materials that retailers and schools can use to help parents identify which devices their children should be using safely and legally, this is exactly the kind of policy that protects families without burdening riders.

Where the Ordinance Falls Short

With the positives on record, we need to be direct about two provisions in the KCMO version that stops us from fully embracing it.

Firstly, the ordinance includes a mandatory helmet requirement for riders younger than 18. Let us be clear: we love helmets. BikeWalkKC distributed more than 450 helmets to children and adults across the Kansas City region in 2025, and we have every intention of continuing that work. The data is clear that helmets reduce the risk of serious head injury, and we encourage every rider to wear one every single time they get on a bike.

But mandatory helmet legislation is a different question. Legislation can be enforced unequally and unfairly in different neighborhoods; there is an access to resources issue, placing burden on vulnerable users, and further promoting inequity. A helmet regulation without a proper helmet distribution program to address inequity will not be sufficient.

The second concerning provision is the ordinance’s imposition of a 20 mph speed limit on bike lanes and cycle tracks. On its face, this may seem reasonable — but in practice, it creates a serious and unresolved conflict with existing law and undermines the transportation function of our bike infrastructure.

Class 3 e-bikes are legally designed to operate at up to 28 mph with motor assistance. They are already legal under Missouri and federal law. A 20 mph cap on bike lanes creates a hurdle for legal Class 3 e-bike users, preventing their proper use of infrastructure that was designed and built for them. BikeWalkKC supported the creation of our region’s bike lanes and cycle tracks precisely because they are transportation corridors — not recreational spaces. They exist to move people safely and efficiently from place to place.