They’ve been banned from San Diego’s beach boardwalks since 2020, yet, e-bikes are still seen weaving along the Mission Bay Boardwalk alongside regular bikes, walkers and skaters.
Pamela and Paul Mott choose to ride their e-bikes at Lake Miramar.
“Because e-bikes are allowed here,” exclaimed Paul.
He’d like to ride along Mission Bay where San Diego Park Rangers have enforced the ban steadily over the past year.
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“I think it’s because of the safety aspect of it. They don’t want to see people getting hurt,” Paul agreed.
However, he argued his e-bike can be peddled like a regular bike, which is allowed under 8 miles an hour along the boardwalks.
“I just don’t have the physical capacity to go up and down these hills anymore. So, adding the motor to my bike has really allowed me to continue doing the sport that I love,” explained Paul.
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“I think the rule was overdone when they banned e-bikes because e-bikes are not really the problem. It’s just a few bad actors,” he continued. “It’s really about the person and there are many citizens of San Diego who are riding e-bikes are we’re fine.”
“Somebody does something bad, a bad egg; and then all of us pay for it,” continued his wife, Pamela. “I’m really mad. I might have a smile on my face but I’m mad.”
NBC 7 recently spoke with dog owners who are looking to overturn a ban on dog walking during the middle of the day along the boardwalks. That ban has been in place for decades.
Paul organized a Facebook page for e-bike owners. It now has more than 2,000 members and he’s rallying them for a fight to change the law.
“I think it has to happen someday because these e-bikes aren’t going away. They’re going to be here until the end of time,” he concluded.
