Police caution parents on allowing children to use e-bikes

The Guyana Police Force (GPF) is advising parents about the dangers of allowing children to use e-bikes on the busy roadways as well as they themselves using this mode of transportation to carry their kids.
E-bikes have become a popular mode of transportation for children along the East Coast Demerara, but police are raising serious safety concerns.
According to Sergeant Kevin Leitch of the Beterverwagting Police Station during a recent televised programme, children as young as five are riding these e-bikes without proper knowledge of road safety.

Sergeant Leitch pointed out that young riders are often seen riding on the wrong side of the road, into oncoming traffic, and disregarding all road signs.
These behaviors, he said, pose significant dangers not only to the riders themselves but also to other road users.
“To the best of their knowledge, they don’t know anything about the use of the road when using such motor vehicles. Some of them, would ride along the opposite lane of traffic into the incoming traffic…”, he explained.
He said the issue is compounded by parents who not only allow but also participate in these unsafe practices.
The sergeant said officers have reported instances of parents taking multiple children on a single e-bike to school. Despite police interventions, these dangerous behaviors continue.
“These parents are giving the children these e-cycles to go to school or the shops…I would see parents with two or three children driving. You would be stopping the traffic and they would still be riding. Many times, you have to stop and talk to them and tell them the next time you will charge them,” Leitch said.
He said even when officers intervene and stop these riders, Leitch said some parents and bystanders react with verbal abuse towards the officers, complicating enforcement efforts.
Just last year, they were amendments to the Motor Vehicles and Road Traffic laws, which seek to regulate the use of electric bikes.
The new regulatory framework aims to address the rising number of road fatalities and incidents involving electric bikes. The bill was passed in the National Assembly in April last year.
Supported unambitiously in Parliament the Bill defines electric cycles as motorcycles with electric motors and effective braking systems. It mandates that electric cycles adhere to the same registration and usage rules as conventional motorcycles.
These bikes, costing between $70,000 and $150,000 and with speeds below 50 km/h, have become popular due to their affordability and ease of use. (G9)