Non-serious crashes in the City of Boulder involving e-bikes are on the rise, and the rate of severe crashes has decreased over the past five years, according to a crash data update provided to the Transportation Advisory Board in November.
In the past four and a half years, 16% of bicycling crashes involved an e-bike, according to officers’ narratives of crash reports. Total bicycle crashes involving e-bikes have increased from 4% in 2021 to 25% in 2024. The percentage of severe crashes, defined as incidents that result in serious injury or death, involving all bicycles remains at 36%. The City Attorney’s Office has been directed to research the city’s authority to regulate e-bikes, and city staff are monitoring crashes that involve e-bikes versus traditional bikes.
Citywide and across vehicle types, Boulder saw 45 severe crashes in 2024. Through September 2025, the city had 34 severe crashes and is expected to see similar rates to those in 2024 by the end of the year. These rates are an improvement from the years leading up to the pandemic, when Boulder saw an average of 55 severe crashes annually.
Vehicle-bicycle collisions made up almost a third of crashes in 2024, followed by vehicle-pedestrian and vehicle-vehicle crashes. Severe crashes often involved bicyclists, pedestrians, fixed objects and drivers making left turns. Between 2022 and 2024, Boulder saw significant decreases in severe crashes caused by driving under the influence, speeding and crashes involving people aged 15 to 29 and 65 or older compared to he period from 2018 to 2020. Motorcycle crashes have increased by 6%.
Meanwhile, less than 1% of crashes citywide involve e-scooters. Lime e-scooters have logged 2.5 million rides since their introduction in August 2021 and their citywide expansion in August 2023. Through 2024, e-scooters were involved in a severe crash roughly once per 350,000 rides.
Boulder’s current Vision Zero Action Plan, which aims to eliminate severe crashes, was finalized in May 2023 and outlines traffic safety priorities through 2027. Implementation of some items, such as studying right-turn slip lane design and updating signal timing practices for certain turns, is inhibited by staff vacancies.
Good topic. I ride a e-bike around Boulder a fair deal and commute on it to Broomfield, do I definitely support their use and utility.
Having said that, I’m amazed at what is allowed to pass as an e-bike and be in the bike lanes, both our on-road lanes and protected paths. This seems to be unregulated by law enforcement. I had one pace me in the bike lane while I was driving my car on 47th the other day – it did 40 MPH, no joke! Rider not pedaling.
You can see them on Amazon now advertised to go 50 and 60 MPH…yet look like a full bike and hardly discernible from my commuter. I can’t say that I’m familiar with Boulder’s regulations for use in bike lanes and bike paths, but that seems extreme and dangerous. These are really just motorcycles and should either be licensed to go on the main road arteries or limited to more reasonable speeds on our paths.
E-bikes…or electric motorcycles? There is a big difference, but they are all clumped together. There are e-vehicles out there that in no way are bicycles: they have throttles, they go anywhere without the least need to peddle, they can go 30 mph or higher. These are not e-bicycles and should be licensed and registered as street-only, meaning an age-appropriate license to drive and enforcement of not-on-multi-use-paths or bike paths. Most of those riding do not seem to know the rules of the road nor how to share the space comfortably or politely. It frankly curls my hair to see children on these machines. Peddle-assist e-bikes are in a different category – mine won’t go without some work on my part; the assist cuts out at 20 mph, which old woman that I am, is only reachable on a steep downhill; I can and do opt not to have any assist and then it’s just like a really heavy regular bicycle.
This huge original error in nomenclature confuses all discussion on e-bikes:
“Class ll” are small motorcycles, ridden sometimes recklessly by pre-teens, and are the source of most accidents and all complaints about e-bikes;
“Class l” and “Class lll” are real e-bikes, are safe, are by far the lowest carbon-emission transportation ever invented, and should be strongly encouraged.
For any discussion, regulation, or reporting to make any sense, we must stop lumping these two very different vehicles together!
There was a frightening article in the Sunday NY Times reporting on the dangers of E bikes, especially used by teen and under riders. Serious injuries happen fast with their speed and velocity, especially when users have no helmets. A teen in CA hit her head which caused bleeding in her brain. Half of her skull was removed to treat the injury, and it took a year for her to recover. Helmets save lives!
Great summary of the core issue that law enforcement in city and county seems to be ignoring.
I agree with the other commenters. As an avid e biker, we should really limit their pedal assist speeds to under 20, maybe even 15 and I believe in pedal assist not throttles. Further cars, e-bikes, motorcycles should all be limited to the posted speed limit either with cameras, motor restrictions, or gps governor. We 100% have the technology to solve speeding by any motor vehicle. The question is, is there political will?