OCEAN CITY – Borne out of a larger discussion about the rental of electric bicycles, or e-bikes, has come a debate about prohibiting the rental of all small, motorized vehicles in the resort, but at least one scooter rental operator this week made an impassioned plea to leave them alone.
For the last several months, the Mayor and Council have been back and forth on the debate about the various classes of-e-bikes and if and where they should be allowed to be rented. It started with a ban of all e-bikes on the Boardwalk, but concerns about Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) challenges, or the need for individuals recovering or rehabilitating from injuries to use e-bikes, led to an ordinance that will allow only the lowest grade e-bike on the Boardwalk during the same hours regular bicycles are allowed.
With that ordinance passed, the Mayor and Council turned their attention to the rental of e-bikes in every class in different areas of town excluding the Boardwalk. Now, currently, there are no businesses renting e-bikes in town, but the council expressed concern about their proliferation as they become more and more popular.
Taking it one step further, the discussion arose during a council meeting last week about prohibiting the rental of all small, motorized vehicles including scooters, the low-riding scoot coupes with the familiar high-flying flags signaling motorists where they are, the increasingly popular one-wheelers and hoverboards, and the like.
After considerable debate last month, the majority of the council voted to end the discussion about the rental of e-bikes in the resort. In addition, the motion included a future discussion about ending the rental of all small, motorized vehicles, including scooters, which intermingle in eight lanes of traffic on Coastal Highway with vehicular traffic, municipal buses, pedestrians and all manner of other vehicles.