Naples City Council to discuss e-bike safety rules after close calls

NAPLES, Fla. (WINK) — Naples City Council members are expected to discuss e-bike safety regulations during their meeting on Wednesday morning.

• RELATED: Marco Island residents voice concerns over e-bike safety as Florida legislature passes new bill

The discussion comes after close calls on roadways, including a video taken a few months ago showing a teenager on an e-bike nearly crashing into two cars in Naples.

Collier County has already changed its e-bike rules, and the City of Naples is hoping to follow similar steps. The City of Naples is considering several changes.

Electric bicycles and motorized scooters would be banned from shared-use paths, parks and sidewalks. E-bike riders and bicyclists would have to yield to walkers and follow specific traffic rules, especially near school buses. People under 16 years old could no longer ride Class 3 e-bikes, which can reach speeds up to 28 miles per hour.

The proposed regulations aim to keep people safe on roadways. A Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicle Traffic Crash Statistics Report shows 217 bicycles and e-bikes were involved in traffic crashes in Collier County in 2025, including six deaths. One of those deaths was 14-year-old Clayton Miller.

Michelle Avola-Brown with the Naples Pathways Coalition said it's important to have conversations about safety before bikers get out on the roads.

"When these kids have gone from a bike that they're just pedaling maybe 10, 12 miles per hour, and then they're getting on an e-bike that's going 20 or more, the consequences are quicker," Avola-Brown said.

Neighbors are hoping e-bike riders and drivers start taking safety on the roads more seriously. David, a neighbor, described a close call he experienced.

"I looked over, and next thing I knew, there was a kid in front of me on an e-bike," David said.

David said he thought there would be a change after previous discussions.

"It actually seemed like it encouraged more kids do the exact same thing," David said.

The City of Naples will discuss these changes during their council meeting at 8:30 a.m.