The city is expected to take the lead in implementing strict rules: wearing helmets, limiting passengers, and banning use on expressways and ring roads.
Electric bikes zipping through streets often weave in and out of motor vehicle lanes. At red lights, many electric bike riders refuse to stop and dart into the middle of the road through the slightest gap, brushing past vehicles coming from both sides.
Accidents involving electric bikes often occur due to reckless driving and overloading. Statistics from traffic authorities show that in 2012, a total of 59,997 people died in traffic accidents nationwide. Among them, 5,314 were killed in incidents involving electric bikes, with nearly 27,000 injured.
Behind the high casualty rate are factors such as not wearing helmets, reckless riding, illegal road use, and excessive speeding.
One electric bike carrying four people
At 1 p.m. at the Dingfuzhuang intersection on Chaoyang Road. An electric bike was carrying three adults, with the rider sitting on only a small portion of the seat. As it passed over a pothole, the electric bike made creaking noises. A black plastic-wrapped package was placed on the bike’s footrest. The electric bike crossed the intersection, heading west.
Similar instances of electric bikes carrying passengers are common.
A middle-aged man in a blue shirt mounted an electric bike, with a woman sitting diagonally behind him with no protective gear and eating food. Within 20 minutes, 49 electric bikes passed by, with three people sharing one bike in three cases, two people in 21 cases, and one bike even carrying four people — a young woman holding a baby on the back seat behind a man, while a little girl stood in front of him. According to regulations, when riding non-motorized vehicles, an adult may carry one child on a fixed seat but not anyone over 12 years old; minors are not allowed to carry passengers.
School gates are another hotspot for illegal electric bike passenger transport.
Around 3:30 p.m. at the gate of an elementary school in Haidian District, parents waited for their children to be dismissed. The narrow path outside the school gate was lined with cars picking up kids, leaving just enough space for a single vehicle to pass. Amid the traffic, a middle-aged man wrapped in a thick coat deftly maneuvered his electric bike, dodging in and out to reach the school gate. Soon after, he waved to a boy who had just run out: “Come on, hop on, let’s go home!” Father and son then walked to the parked electric bike, sat one in front of the other, and sped off. In half an hour, eight parents arrived to pick up their kids on electric bikes.
Honking horns and chaotic scenes abounded. Neither parents nor students showed any concern as electric bikes emerged from traffic and sped along at near-motorized speeds. “The bikes sold in stores all come with rear seats — aren’t they meant for passengers?” said one parent, who claimed never to have heard of a ban on carrying passengers on electric bikes. “There won’t be safety issues; we can brake.”
The reporter also noticed that neither parents nor students wore helmets.
Running red lights at intersections and reckless riding in residential areas
Under the Shuanghui Bridge in Chaoyang District, a man rode a blue electric bike with a toddler sitting in front and a woman in the back. When the light turned red, the bike slipped through a gap in the motor vehicle line to the stop line, then suddenly accelerated through a break in pedestrian traffic on the crosswalk, nearly hitting pedestrians.
A young delivery man riding an electric bike from north to south didn’t slow down at a red light but instead sped through. “There are too many riders like this. Nowadays, the biggest fear when crossing the street isn’t motor vehicles, but electric bikes that pop out unexpectedly,” said a pedestrian dodging an electric bike speeding past on the left.
At the Sanjianfang intersection on Chaoyang Road, when the light turned red, all motor vehicles stopped orderly behind the line, waiting for it to turn green. A young man on an electric bike riding west looked around, saw few cars approaching from the north or south, then sped through the red light. Three or four other electric bikes followed suit.
In residential areas, some electric bikes also ride recklessly.
Since getting her guide dog Jenny, blind piano tuner Chen Yan’s travels have become much safer and more convenient. Before that, Chen was knocked down and suffered a head injury by an electric bike in her own neighborhood.
One day, Chen Yan was walking along a neighborhood path, “staying close to the edge as usual, just to avoid danger.” Near a turn in the road, before she could react, she was already on the ground. “The whole thing happened in just a second.”
Chen Yan believes her hearing is much sharper than most people’s. “For safety when walking outside, I don’t wear hats and tie my hair up — so nothing blocks my ears and I can hear clearly.” Even so, on that quiet community path, she was still knocked down. “A neighbor told me it was an electric bike that took the turn too fast, its rear wheel scraping me down. I fell, and the bike just sped off.”
Since then, Chen Yan has done all she can to avoid electric bikes. “I really can’t hear them coming. Often, by the time I do, they’re already right next to me.” After being knocked down, she experienced dizziness and only learned the cause after visiting multiple hospitals. To this day, she still suffers from aftereffects.
Chen Yan isn’t alone — many seniors also voice complaints about electric bikes. “They zip through the neighborhood, especially when turning, with no regard for others around them, just fighting for space.”
Taxis fear electric bikes the most
At the intersection of Chaoyang Road and Qingnian Road, electric bikes made up a significant portion of traffic. Out of 32 electric bikes observed, 21 entered the fast lane, mixing with motor vehicles.
On the main road of Chaoyang Road, electric bikes frequently appeared in the dedicated bus lane for Bus Rapid Transit Line 2. “When electric bike riders see the bus lane empty, some just swerve in and speed through,” said a station attendant. “When buses approach, they quickly cut into the adjacent motor vehicle lane.”
At 5 p.m., electric bikes competed with motor vehicles for road space, driving in motor lanes. Many westbound electric bike riders squeezed into gaps, making the already congested road even more difficult to navigate. Two electric bikes rode side by side in the motor lane going west, blocking vehicles behind. A car behind honked, but the two riders continued without yielding.
A private car driver told reporters that many electric bike riders drive unpredictably in motor lanes, competing for space and creating major safety hazards for urban traffic.
Taxi driver Mr. Zhang said that among taxi drivers, most scrapes with electric bikes happen when pulling over to the curb. “It happens a lot — we often hear colleagues complaining.” Zhang added that in the cases he’s heard of, the motor vehicle is rarely mainly at fault. These incidents usually occur when turning or when an electric bike suddenly darts into the motor lane. “In almost all cases, the electric bike is breaking the rules.”
Master Zhang revealed that after careful observation, to avoid electric bicycles "daring to squeeze through" when pulling over, drivers generally park their vehicles within 30 centimeters of the curb. "The handlebar width of an average electric bicycle is 50 centimeters or more. We park less than 30 centimeters from the curb precisely to prevent electric bicycle riders from taking a chance and speeding through. This minimizes the risk of accidents, which is good for everyone."
Electric bikes must be put under a “tight rein.”
“When an electric bicycle comes from the side, it makes no sound at all, charging recklessly. It has no license plate, and even if it runs a red light, there’s no penalty.” A private car owner believes that if electric bikes were required to have mandatory license plates, it would be easier to quickly identify the rider in case of an accident, ensuring penalties and compensation can be properly assigned.
“To facilitate the management of electric bicycles, it’s necessary to give those on the road a ‘household registration.’” Industry insiders stated that assigning a license plate to every electric bicycle on the road helps in dealing with traffic violations and hit-and-run incidents, giving authorities control over electric bicycle management and keeping the behavior of riders firmly under police supervision. When electric bicycles are on the road, choosing to ride on motor vehicle lanes instead of non-motorized lanes is often due to a fear of “wasting” the bicycle’s “resources.” “The general mindset among electric bike riders is, if the speed can be faster, why not go faster? And to go fast, they must use the motor vehicle lane. Therefore, we must resolutely overcome this mentality among citizens, prohibit electric bicycles from using motor vehicle lanes, and impose legal penalties on those who violate the rules by driving on them. Entry of electric bicycles into motor vehicle lanes must be resolutely prevented.”
Industry insiders stated that experts in China’s road traffic regulations are currently researching and formulating the “Electric Bicycle Safety Management Regulations,” which are expected to be first implemented in Beijing. The regulations will standardize the production, sale, and riding of electric bicycles—for example, prohibiting non-compliant modifications, setting safe speed limits, and more importantly, establishing rules for riders, such as bans on entering highways or ring roads, mandatory helmet use, restrictions on carrying passengers on the rear seat, and penalties for violators.