City of Sydney Council vying to pilot NSW’s first mandatory e-bike course

The City of Sydney Council is pushing to get the first-ever mandatory NSW bike and e-bike education course trialled in CBD schools after a number of dangerous incidents.

Savannah Pocock, Daily Telegraph:

The City of Sydney Council is pushing to get the first-ever mandatory NSW bike and e-bike education course trialled in its LGA.

It’s not rare to see teenagers riding at high speeds late at night down CBD streets and up to 40 teens have been filmed riding dangerously across the Sydney Harbour Bridge a number of times in recent weeks.

There were 94 e-bike-related injuries reported by Sydney’s children’s hospitals last year, with police reluctant to engage in any pursuits due to the injury risk, prompting the council to push for the training.

A Transport for NSW spokeswoman said the NSW Government was developing a bicycle and e-micromobility education course to help young people better understand rider responsibilities.

The course is set to address managing higher speeds, cognitive and behavioural de-risking geared to adolescent risk-taking behaviour and peer-group pressure along with providing education on speed limits, no-ride zones, parents’ legal liabilities, and seize and crush rules.

At a recent council meeting, Lord Mayor Clover Moore was urged to request NSW Transport Minister John Graham and NSW Transport Parliamentary Secretary Marjorie O’Neill to allow a course pilot to be carried out at CBD schools.

Deputy Lord Mayor Jess Miller said the CBD should be prioritised, as it is home to almost 5000 children between 12 and 17, has a high e-bike usage rate and has extensive access to separated cycleway infrastructure.

“That’s a lot of future riders who we want to teach to be safe riders,” she said. “Young people

need to be made aware of the consequences of riding these bikes.”

Ms Miller advocated for the course to explore the results an e-bike crash could have and help children understand how peer pressure can form the decisions they make.

“This is about the next generation of kids having the opportunity to understand what the next generation of tech looks like and how they can use it responsibly.”

Ms Miller said the council had built the city to include kilometres of separated cycleways to prioritise the safety of cyclers and walkers.

“Cutting our reliance on cars is a big priority for us, as well as making an active lifestyle available to everyone in the city, kids very much included,” she said.

In February, police were given powers to seize and crush illegal electric motorbikes which have a motor of more than 250W or a throttle that works above 6km/h. In the CBD, e-bike providers have a speed restriction of 25km/h and are limited to 10km/h through geofencing technology in areas with high foot traffic.

While people under 18 can ride e-bikes, shared e-bike providers need riders to be 18 years or older. Within the last 12 months, 3 million share bike trips were taken in the City of Sydney, which is almost double the number from the previous year.

The Transport for NSW spokeswoman said the course would include online learning and testing modules covering key safety messages, teaching them how to share the road, how to ride safely around pedestrians, cars and other cyclists.

Work on the program is underway, with further details on timing and the rollout to be confirmed as development progresses.

The education program will also be supported by a broader communications and engagement toolkit that government agencies, councils and community groups can use locally.