Mayor Steve Noble told city police commissioners that city attorneys are drafting a new law to regulate e-bikes on the streets of Kingston. Noble added that he and other municipal leaders plan to lobby Albany lawmakers at the upcoming legislative session for tougher statewide regulations on the controversial vehicles.

“Here in Kingston we will have our own law,” Noble, who is chair of the Police Commission, said at a meeting Wednesday. “But being able to have a baseline of state legislation would help all of our jurisdictions have more clarity on what to do when you have these bikes that are going more than 20 mph and how best to hold people accountable.”

E-bikes, powered by electricity rather than gasoline, have surged in popularity in recent years both locally and nationwide. Advocates for e-bikes say that when used safely, the “micromobility” vehicles can provide an eco-friendly and affordable alternative to cars. But the bikes’ popularity has outpaced regulation and enforcement efforts with even police uncertain about the vehicles’ legal status. At the police commission meeting, KPD Chief Egidio Tinti said the department is working to correct that with additional training and increased awareness of issues with e-bikes.

The bikes have been involved in a number of serious crashes this year, most recently last month when two 18-year-olds riding double on one were seriously injured when they struck a car near the Broadway traffic circle. In addition, e-bikes on the streets of Kingston are classified as “e-motos” capable of speeds in excess of 25 mph, which are not street-legal anywhere in the state. Amazon recently stopped shipping e-motos to New York State, but many of the vehicles remain in circulation.

Noble said city attorneys are working closely with the KPD to draft new legislation to address illegal bikes and unsafe riding. Noble said he expected to pass the legislation on for approval by the Kingston Common Council “very soon.”

“The police department has been excellent working with our Corporation Counsel’s Office to make sure that what we do is going to work for us,” Noble said.

While local legislation is coming, Noble said he planned to push for new state laws on e-bikes when the state legislature convenes again in January. Noble said that at a virtual meeting of the New York Conference of Mayors this week to discuss priorities for the 2027 legislative session, statewide laws to address e-bikes were high on everybody’s list. Noble said that while he believed local legislation would be helpful, statewide laws were needed to allow for clear and consistent messaging to the public across municipal boundaries.

“We don’t want to have a situation where our public messaging is so confusing that people can be like, ‘I live in Hurley, I didn’t know the rules,’” said Noble. “We want to be really clear that whether you live in Hurley or the Town of Ulster or Kingston you cannot use this type of bike in any of our neighborhoods wherever you live.”

Noble said the city was already making progress addressing unsafe riding and illegal bikes as stepped-up enforcement has put riders on notice that city police are watching and more parents are becoming aware of existing laws that prohibit anyone under the age of 16 from operating an e-bike of any class. Noble added that after a hectic summer that saw a number of e-bike-involved crashes there seemed to be fewer bikes on the street as cool weather comes in.

“I think the fact that it’s 33 degrees in the mornings is helpful,” said Noble. “But we want to have legislation in place in time for bike season next year.”