SAN DIEGO — While electric bikes are exploding in popularity, the number of e-bike accidents, locally and nationwide, are continuing to rise.
On Tuesday, just hours apart, two people were seriously injured in separate accidents as they were riding e-bikes: one in Shelltown, the other in the Gaslamp.
One of those accidents took place on Market Street in when a 56-year-old woman riding an e-bike was seriously injured when she was sideswiped by a pick-up.
While there's no word on her condition, as the number of e-bike accidents increase, so too do the calls for more e-bike safety regulations.
For mom Trinity Vo, e-bikes are a great, and affordable, way to get her six-year-old son Anthony outside.
He rides with his dad and always wears a helmet, Vo said.
"It's eco-friendly and it gets the kids out," she added. He's on his devices too much!"
But she would like to see more safety measures put in place to help protect everyone.
"I'd love to have more of these riding safety lanes with those orange cones, because these cars are getting pretty fast," Vo told CBS 8. "It's dangerous for little kids and e-bike riders."
These calls for safety have been increasing in recent months, following the death of a 15-year-old on an e-bike in Encinitas and the death of a Carlsbad mother last year.
"Ideally.. we are looking for solutions and not just at the problems," said Ed Clancy, the founder of the local non-profit Pedal Ahead, which helps provide e-bikes to underserved communities, with a strong emphasis on rider safety.
'Seminars, sessions, training, working with the Sheriff's department, advocate groups to be able to say and understand the rules of the road that typically you're not given when you purchase a bike," Clancy said.
Local Assembly Member Tasha Boerner is now pushing for new legislation that would require a license for e-bike riders 12 and over and ban e-bikes for those under 12.
"If that license includes education, understanding the rules of the road and what to follow, then it could be a very good measure," Clancy told CBS 8.
Another safety concern surrounding e-bikes: the fire hazard posed by some of the rechargeable lithium batteries that e-bikes require, sparking a number of fires locally as well as one earlier this week in San Francisco.
E-bike owner Jose Villarica says he takes extra precautions when charging his battery.
"You got to leave it in a shaded area, not exposed to the sun, not exposed to anything flammable or combustible," he said.
To address this fire hazard, starting this fall, New York City will ban the sale of e-bikes that don't meet certain safety standards. It is the first city in the U.S. to take this step.
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