With Oregon set to lower the minimum age for riding Class 1 e-bikes and e-scooters from 16 to 14 on Jan. 1, 2027, Tualatin residents can weigh in on safety concerns at a public listening session Tuesday, Oct. 27, at Hazelbrook Middle School.
The Tualatin E-Bike Safety Coalition, a group of about 10 representatives from city parks, Tualatin Police, the Tigard-Tualatin School District (TTSD), Randall Children's Hospital and the Byrom Neighborhood Community Involvement Association, is hosting the event, first reported by the Valley Times.
The session comes just over two months before Oregon House Bill 4007 (HB 4007) takes effect Jan. 1, 2027. The law lowers the legal age to operate Class 1 e-bikes and e-scooters from 16 to 14. Class 1 e-bikes are pedal-assisted devices with a maximum motorized speed of 20 mph.
Danny O'Neal, the land-use officer for the Byrom association who helped launch the coalition, said he doesn't support the lower age limit. "How many 14 year olds do you know that know the rules of the road?" O'Neal said, according to the Valley Times.
O'Neal said a near-miss on Southwest Boones Ferry Road prompted his involvement. He was walking his dog when an e-scooter rider flew past them, completely taking up the sidewalk.
The coalition held its first meeting in May and has met monthly since, according to Tualatin Life. Beth Dittman, a Parks Advisory Committee member and the unopposed candidate for Tualatin City Council Position 5, serves as the coalition's facilitator.
Dittman told the Valley Times the session will let residents hear what the coalition has done so far and share their own concerns.
The group already ran a weeklong education program at Hazelbrook in late September, teaching middle schoolers about e-bike classes, speed limits and which devices are legal on public roads. Dittman said the lessons covered how some e-bikes that reach 45 mph are legal only on private property.
TTSD bans students in kindergarten through eighth grade from riding or walking e-bikes and e-scooters on elementary and middle school property.
Statewide injury numbers underscore the coalition's urgency. Oregon Health Authority data cited by Tualatin Life show Oregon hospitals reported 211 e-scooter injuries in 2021. O'Neal told Tualatin Life the last available 2025 figure had reached 639.
In October 2024, a Tigard High School sophomore likely died after crashing an e-bike into a tree on Southwest 124th Avenue near Southwest Myslony Street in Tualatin, the Tualatin Police Department said in a statement reported by the Valley Times. The rider was wearing a helmet.
The listening session at Hazelbrook is free and open to all Tualatin-area residents.
