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Washington State in the US has established a clear line between the definitions of e-bikes (electric-assist bicycles) and electric motorcycles. The vague treatment of anything as "just an e-bike" no longer applies, as the classification becomes more clearly defined.
This is extremely important as a matter of definition, not sentiment. E-bikes and electric motorcycles are fundamentally different in both output and speed range. If they keep growing while staying ambiguous, liability in an accident and the boundaries of where you can ride will collapse. Washington State's decision to clarify categories based on data and specifications is, I think, technically sound.
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If high-power pseudo e-bikes were basically unregulated before, this line-drawing seems like a reasonable call for safety.
Being treated vaguely as "just an e-bike" — I wonder what kind of loophole that actually created.
The US has a lot of state-by-state regulation, so this is probably a Washington-State-only thing.
If it's regulated state by state, I'm curious how it lines up with other states.
They say the line is now clearer, but I wish the article had the actual power/speed thresholds.
Depending on where the power threshold gets set, the range of models it covers could shift quite a bit.
More surprising that the line between e-bikes and electric motorcycles was left this vague for so long.
This ties into licensing and helmet requirements too, so clarifying it matters a lot for riders.
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