Oviedo City Council was set to hold a public hearing and final vote Monday night, Oct. 19, on Ordinance No. 1776, which would write speed limits and riding rules for e-bikes, motorized scooters, skateboards and similar devices into the city code. City staff recommended adoption, and the draft says it would take effect as soon as it is enacted.
If the measure passes, Oviedo would become the first Seminole County city with its own local rules for these devices, WKMG News 6 reported.
What the draft says
The ordinance would create a new Section 50-2 of the city code covering bicycles and what it calls micromobility devices. Under the version in the council's Oct. 19 meeting packet:
- Sidewalks: bicycles, e-bikes and motorized scooters could use sidewalks unless signs prohibit it, with a 15 mph top speed. Riders would have to drop to 10 mph when they come within 50 feet of someone on foot, yield to people on foot and give an audible warning before passing.
- Multi-use and shared-use paths: bicycles and e-bikes would be capped at 28 mph and motorized scooters at 20 mph, with the same duty to yield and warn.
- Skateboards and hoverboards: electric and traditional skateboards, self-balancing vehicles and hoverboards would be limited to 10 mph around pedestrians.
- School crossings: riders could go no faster than 5 mph through a school crosswalk staffed by a crossing guard.
- Other limits: no riding while wearing headphones or earbuds (hearing aids excepted), and no riding on athletic fields, playgrounds, picnic areas or unmarked natural trails. Scooters would need front and rear lights and working brakes, and riders under 16 on scooters, skateboards and hoverboards would need helmets.
Penalties
Oviedo police officers would enforce the rules. Penalties would start at a warning or a maximum $50 fine for a first offense, climb to as much as $100 for a second within 12 months, and reach as much as $250 for a third or later one in that window.
For riders under 18, a parent or guardian would be notified after a first violation and would be responsible for fines and costs on a second or later citation. The draft notes that state law governs wherever it preempts the local rules.
How it got here
The council took up the ordinance on first reading Sept. 21 and held a work session on Sept. 28. According to the staff memo, council members asked the city attorney to borrow parts of an ordinance Orange County adopted Sept. 29, add an education component, address speeds on sidewalks and paths, and settle the question of the Cross Seminole Trail.
