Art reflects reality as an e-bike bicyclist rides the Renzel Trail, a legal trail for e-bikes to use, past a metallic cyclist sculpture in Palo Alto, California, Wednesday, March 1, 2023. SAN JOSE, Calif. — The boom in electric-powered bicycling is reducing car travel, lowering carbon emissions and introducing homebodies to exercise and the great outdoors.
But the activity is on a collision course with an equally cherished environmental ideal: peace and quiet.
In response to a new state policy that allows e-bikes anywhere that standard bikes are permitted, local officials are racing to ban their use on unpaved routes in open space preserves.
On Monday, the city of Palo Alto voted 5-2 to prohibit them from the popular Baylands Trail, beloved for its sweeping views of the South Bay, multitudes of picturesque waterfowl and easy commute to Google and other tech campuses.
The vote brought howls of protest among many residents of a city that prides itself on innovation and sustainability, with a new $23.1 million bike overpass, bike boulevards, instructional webinars and programs that support all kinds of cycling, including e-bikes, to meet its environmental goals.
“I was really looking forward to riding my new e-bike over to just go sit on a bench and look out at the Bay,” said Deborah Wexler, who can’t ride conventional bikes due to knee and hip ailments. An environmentalist who donates to open space efforts, she sighed, “I’ll be back in the car.”
But the ban is welcomed by others who say they’ve been terrorized on […]
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