Police have posted information and graphics - including this one of prohibited bikes - on their Facebook page with the hope of curbing the use of high-powered (750 watts or higher) electric bicycles, which are not allowed in the village.
Police want to remind parents that certain e-bikes are prohibited in Hinsdale.
The Hinsdale Village Board passed an ordinance earlier this year prohibiting bikes powered by more than 750 watts and regulating the use of low-powered bikes, scooters and other devices in the village. Since that time, police have issued more than 60 warnings and citations to riders who have violated state law and village regulations.
Deputy Chief Tom Lillie said that number doesn't surprise him.
"Many of the riders are from adjacent communities as well," he said. "I think our message has been pretty effective within the community, but it's hard when all these riders from adjacent communities come in."
Police have been using the summer and fall months to spread the word about the new ordinance, offering warnings and a bit of education to violators. But citations have been issued as well, to riders who did not heed a warning and parents who have not taken steps to avoid another encounter with police.
"I think the parents are starting to catch on after either the kids have been stopped or their friends have been stopped," Lillie said.
Hinsdale's ordinance mirrors state law when it comes to the use of low-speed electric bicycles. By having a village ordinance, police can cite violators under that instead of state law, thereby not interfering with a teen's ability to get a drivers license.
Any bike with a battery producing 750 watts or higher - whether or not it has peddles - is the equivalent of a motor vehicle or dirt bike. Police said some manufacturers misrepresent their products, claiming a maximum speed or listing them as part of a specific class. Some have stickers that falsely classify them as low-speed.
Police recognize e-bikes are becoming more common and do not object to all models.
"It's more these souped-up ones, the ones that have these motors that would be equivalent to a legitimate dirt bike that are being disguised as bicycles. Those are the ones we would be concerned about," he said.
Residents are encouraged to consult police before a purchase, Lillie noted.
"There's not a whole lot of people that are in the market for buying electric bikes that are reaching out to the police department and looking for our assistance as to whether they should or shouldn't buy a certain bike," he said.
Parents also can look at the materials posted on the police department's Facebook page. The full ordinance also is available on the village's website at http://www.villageofhinsdale.org.
"The whole point of establishing the ordinance wasn't to write tickets, it was to provide direction," Lillie said.
