No licence, no e-bike riding laws introduced this week
FNQ roads
A new round of the beefed-up e-scooter and e-bike laws has begun this week on Queensland roads.
From the start of September most e-device riders will be required to have the minimum of a learners’ driver’s licence or face a fine of about $520 - and police across the state are conducting random checks of riders to enforce the new law.
Police Disaster and Emergency Management Acting Deputy Commissioner Rhys Wildman said the new rules were about having an understanding of the rules of the road.
“E-mobility devices are vehicles that must be operated safely, responsibly and under Queensland road rules,” he said.
“Queensland police are reminding all e-mobility riders and their caregivers to familiarise themselves with the new requirements and understand their responsibilities as road users.”
Some exemptions apply, including for 12-17-year-olds supervised by a caregiver, riders in recreational areas such as bike trails, and people with medical exemptions.
Since the first round of rule changes were introduced at the start of July, police have issued more than 1700 infringement notices to e-device riders.
These include more than 1000 fines for not wearing helmets, more than 140 for speeding, more than 50 for drink riding and the seizing of close to 400 non-compliant devices.
New laws introduced in July include giving police the power to destroy e-bikes if the motor is bigger than 250 watts or has the power to go faster than 25km/h, as well as the ability to conduct random breath tests of riders.
E-bikes, e-scooters and other e-devices are no longer allowed to go faster than 12km/h on footpaths and when passing pedestrians on shared paths, while the maximum speed limit on roads is now 25km/h.
Parents and guardians can now be fined for under 16s riding illegally, while retailers are banned from selling e-devices to under 16s.
New and increased penalties include $518 for not wearing a helmet, two riders on the same device, riding on a prohibited road and careless riding.
Speeding can attract a fine of anywhere from $345-$1986 depending on the speed, while drunk riding can cost anywhere from $518-$6908.
You can also now be fined more than $170 for “unsafe parking”.
