Yes, you absolutely can get an OWI on a bicycle. But it isn't heavily enforced on trails unless you create an incident.
As far as local laws, I'm not sure there are many that would supercede state law.
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- Thread starter Gossamer
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Yes, you absolutely can get an OWI on a bicycle. But it isn't heavily enforced on trails unless you create an incident.
As far as local laws, I'm not sure there are many that would supercede state law.
I am pretty sure you can't. I know people who have done the research. They can give you a public intox but no OWI.
Ah, the internet. Where complete strangers can get tough with each other and have a p!ssing contest over theoretical sidewalks.
I am 98% sure my former BIL got an OWI on a lawn tractor.
That was AFTER the cops escorted him from the bar to home for being drunk and disorderly. He got on the tractor to drive back to the bar. Oddly, the cops did not appreciate that clever move.
I'm back and forth on this one as well. I was very much against "e-bikes" until looked more at who really benefited from them. My parents who haven't ridden bikes in decades, now go on rides with my nephew because they can keep up. I was chatting up a cyclist at a bar stop a couple years ago and he was sharing how injuries (I think his knees) kept him from being able to pedal a bike very far. After e-bikes became a thing he's been very excited to get back outside and enjoy a hobby he loves. Those things make me pro-ebike.
The cons are the guy I see riding through water works park trail in a gas powered "bike" at a good pace. Also the ass who rides what can only be called an electric motorcycle through the wooded trails at Denmans. They, I would consider a nuisance.
If someone wants to spend the money to buy a bike that assists with X number of watts which allows them to get healthy and enjoy the outdoors...go for it. I support that 100%.
The cons are the guy I see riding through water works park trail in a gas powered "bike" at a good pace. Also the ass who rides what can only be called an electric motorcycle through the wooded trails at Denmans. They, I would consider a nuisance.
If someone wants to spend the money to buy a bike that assists with X number of watts which allows them to get healthy and enjoy the outdoors...go for it. I support that 100%.
Think you can get a DWI if it is motorized. So those electric bikes could count I would think.
How about those buggies that look like a little car that people push their kids in? They have four wheels.
In some states, yes, but not in Iowa. Ragbrai would cease to exist if that were the case.
They need to be pedaled to work. Primarily for out of shape or older people to get on a bike and get exercise. They are not a moped.
This is a topic that deserves more research. My initial thoughts are that it would go along the lines of the definition of what's an e-bike and what's not. Common sense would dictate that since the state of Iowa has a legal definition, (750 watt, < 20 mph, it wouldn't apply. But then again, common sense is not nearly as common as it used to be...
I agree and think they should be taxed proportionate to the damage they do to the roads. I'd say $.01 per year. That's rounded up.
i'm not arguing with you but that doesn't answer my question...i didn't ask about the rider...I asked about the mechanism. I am all for all people getting exercise, but your argument implies a certain age may not be appropriate to ride an e-bike.
but if i ride my electric moped at 11 mph on a bicycle path, is that any different than riding my ebike on the same path at 11 mph and not pedaling? And before you tell me there are ebikes that require pedaling, that's not accurate.
I'm not familiar with e-bikes that don't require pedaling so we are talking about different things.
That said, I suppose I'm more concerned about the speed capablity than how a bike is powered when deciding if it is trail/path appropriate. Roads are freaking dangerous for cyclists, with or without power assist.
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Ok... in regard to e-bikes and OWIs in Iowa, it's a bit murky...primarily because the issue has never been tested in the courts. But the AG's office believes that because the legislature specifically defined such as non-motorized vehicles, you can not. Who wants to be the guniea pig?!? haha
<<<The Iowa Attorney General in a non-binding opinion requested by the Adair County Attorney has indicated that a bicycle, including electrified bicycles that do not exceed the 20 mph limit unassisted human power, requires no licensure nor registration. A motorized bicycle rider must title, register, and insure a motorized bicycle and it must have a manufacturer’s certificate of origin and a VIN number for that purpose. A rider must have a driver’s license or a moped rider’s license to ride a motorized bicycle in the State of Iowa.
A motorized bicycle rider may not lane split, may not carry passengers, and must operate with a 5 foot long flag Day-Glo in color, as well as with his or her headlights always on. The attorney general opinion goes on—again, it’s non-binding on the courts—as stating that, at the very least, bicycles and less-than-20-mph electrified bicycles are not motor vehicles because the Legislature did not identify them as such.>>>
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<<<The Iowa Attorney General in a non-binding opinion requested by the Adair County Attorney has indicated that a bicycle, including electrified bicycles that do not exceed the 20 mph limit unassisted human power, requires no licensure nor registration. A motorized bicycle rider must title, register, and insure a motorized bicycle and it must have a manufacturer’s certificate of origin and a VIN number for that purpose. A rider must have a driver’s license or a moped rider’s license to ride a motorized bicycle in the State of Iowa.
A motorized bicycle rider may not lane split, may not carry passengers, and must operate with a 5 foot long flag Day-Glo in color, as well as with his or her headlights always on. The attorney general opinion goes on—again, it’s non-binding on the courts—as stating that, at the very least, bicycles and less-than-20-mph electrified bicycles are not motor vehicles because the Legislature did not identify them as such.>>>
Do I Need a License to Ride a motorized bicycle in Iowa?
There is a movement afoot to electrify and otherwise motorize bicycles. This movement is slightly different than the moped movement of the 1980s where established players created motorized pedal vehicles (thus, “mo-peds”) as an answer to the international fuel crisis. It includes both the kit...
www.daclawfirm.com
which I appreciate...however, both of what we're referring to can be found on "bicycle" trails rather than just the road.