Local riders of electric bicycles can breathe a sigh of relief after the Warrenton Board of Aldermen approved changes to the city code last week, making it significantly less restrictive of the vehicles.

The changes were made to align city ordinances with Missouri statute following a citizen complaint last month. In 2021, the Missouri Legislature approved changes to state law that removed e-bikes from the same category of vehicles as gas-powered mopeds and added various protections for e-bike users.

Although the changes approved at last week’s aldermen meeting eliminated requirements for helmets, drivers’ licenses, registration and insurance for e-bike users, they did not resolve one last remaining issue that was brought up at the September meeting.

Sean Fitzsimmons initially brought the issue to the city’s attention after receiving several tickets related to riding his e-bike, and he spoke at both the Sept. 15 and Oct. 6 Board of Aldermen meetings.

While the city’s efforts to modernize its code relating to e-bikes are “highly commendable,” Fitzsimmons said, “the current draft includes a technical phrasing discrepancy that inadvertently creates an unresolveable statutory paradox for safe, law-abiding constituents.”

Specifically, he said, “the inclusion of the phrase ‘less than 750 watts’ places standard, factory-built, consumer electric bicycles in a legal regulatory void, where compliance with regulatory mandates is a practical and legal impossibility.”

The ordinance approved last week defines an electric bicycle as having “an electric motor of less than” 750 watts. Fitzsimmons’ bike is exactly 750 watts.

Warrenton’s new e-bike ordinance, following state statute, defines three classes of electric bicycles. Class 1 are bikes equipped with an electric motor that provides assistance only when the rider is pedaling and have a maximum speed of 20 mph, Class 2 bikes are the same as Class 1 but can provide motor assistance without pedaling, and Class 3 e-bikes have pedal-assisted motors with a maximum speed of 28 mph. All three classes are defined as “less than” 750 watts.

Classifying 750-watt e-bikes as motorized bicycles, however, “immediately triggers a series of circular legal demands that no citizen can satisfy,” according to Fitzsimmons.

Fitzsimmons said there is a federal law that conflicts with Missouri statute, which states that “low-speed electric bicycles are regulated and permitted to have motors up to 750 watts nominally,” and that amending the Warrenton ordinance to use the phrase “up to” rather than “less than” 750 watts would resolve the issue.

City Administrator Brandie Walters and City Attorney Bradley Pryor said, however, that the new e-bike code changes were written in accordance with both state and federal statutes.

“The definition of ‘electric bicycle’ comes directly from the statutes — from the Missouri statutes as well as there’s an analogous federal statute — and they include language that is the ‘less than 750 watts,’ and that’s where that is derived from,” Pryor said.

Asked by Alderman Roger Romaker whether the new ordinance would, as Fitzsimmons suggested, “leave a gray area that is not addressed by statute for bikes that are exactly 750,” Pryor said the ordinance would make Warrenton city code consistent with Missouri statute.

Alderman Christine Wait said she looked into the matter since Fitzsimmons brought it up last month, and was particularly curious about it because her family has e-bikes.

“I think whenever this first came about, as far as the state statute goes, they really didn’t know how to word it,” she said, adding that she recently found out that her family’s two e-bikes are two different wattages. Many e-bike users likely do not know their own vehicle’s wattage, she said.

“When I bought mine, I had no idea,” she said, adding, however, that regardless of whether riders know the specifications of their e-bikes, the city must still follow state statute.

The Board of Aldermen approved the e-bike ordinance as presented Oct. 6, without making Fitzsimmons’ requested change of “less than” to “up to,” on a 6-0 vote.

The original citation that Fitzsimmons was pulled over for, a helmet violation, was dropped shortly after the initial traffic stop. Following last week’s vote, Fitzsimmons told the Record that he will continue to seek the dismissal of his remaining tickets, and that if city officials studied the matter further, they would find that they have the authority to allow e-bikes “up to” 750 watts.

“I’ve seen language that goes both ways: ‘750 or less’ or ‘less than 750.’ It leaves a paradox, ambiguity, you can’t register it at the DMV, you can’t get insurance because there’s no VIN number,” he said, adding that he considers the citations he received to be unenforceable.

“All the tickets that they gave me? They cannot be complied with. Therefore, they’re null and void,” he said.