Encinitas residents grappling with a surge in e-bike crashes will soon have access to real-time injury data the region has never had.
The San Diego County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on Wednesday, Oct. 7, to create a regional e-Bike Injury Warning System, according to the County News Center. The system will pinpoint where e-bike injuries are occurring, who is being hurt and what types of devices are involved.
The vote came as pediatric e-bike trauma cases at Rady Children's Hospital climbed from three in 2021 to 262 in 2025. Local officials had been waiting as long as 14 months for statewide injury data to filter back to the region.
The new system will pull information from hospitals, trauma centers, emergency departments, Emergency Medical Services providers and law enforcement agencies. It will track rider age, crash time and location, helmet use, device type, injury severity and patient outcomes. The county said it will use existing staff and resources, adding no cost to the General Fund.
The county plans to publicly report regional injury trends on an ongoing basis.
Encinitas already feeling the pressure
Sheriff's Office data presented to the Encinitas City Council showed 146 reported e-bike collisions from 2022 through July 31, 2026, North Coast Current reported. Riders ages 13 to 15 accounted for 62 of those crashes, the largest age group.
Sheriff's Capt. Shane Watts told the council in August that 14 e-bike collisions had been reported in Encinitas during the first seven months of 2026. Half involved youth riders. Two involved riders older than 70 who fell off their bikes, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported.
Mayor Bruce Ehlers said he hears the most complaints from residents near the 44-acre Encinitas Community Park and Olivenhain's Sun Vista Park, where students from Diegueno Middle School cut through daily on e-bikes.
In the first two months of 2026, deputies seized 16 e-motorcycles from young riders who were not legally allowed to operate them, Watts said in March. Deputies used helicopters to track down some violators, the Union-Tribune reported.
The urgency traces back to June 2023, when a 15-year-old e-bike rider was killed at the intersection of Santa Fe Drive and El Camino Real. The council declared a state of emergency and later lowered vehicle speed limits on many area roadways.
Countywide e-bike injuries rising
Dr. Romeo Ignacio Jr., a pediatric surgeon at Rady Children's Hospital, described the trajectory in March when speaking to inewsource: "The numbers keep on increasing, and it seems like every two years it's doubling."
Countywide, trauma centers reported 294 e-bike injuries in 2024, a 54% jump from 191 in 2023, according to inewsource.
New state laws add enforcement tools
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed three e-bike safety laws on Sept. 30, one week before the county's vote. AB 2346 sets a default 10 mph speed limit for e-bikes on sidewalks starting Jan. 1, 2027, and lets local governments set bike-path speed limits between 10 and 20 mph, KPBS reported. SB 1167 bars retailers from selling devices that exceed e-bike speed limits as "e-bikes," reclassifying them as mopeds or motor-driven cycles that require registration and a license, also effective Jan. 1, 2027.
AB 2595 authorizes a San Mateo County pilot program banning children under 12 from riding certain lower-speed e-bikes, with $25 fines for parents or guardians. That pilot is set to sunset in 2031.
What's next locally
At an Aug. 26 special meeting, the Encinitas City Council directed staff to return with e-bike safety proposals for a future meeting, likely in October 2026. No date has been announced. The council also authorized the city manager to work with the Sheriff's Office on adding two deputies through the midyear budget process.
No rollout timeline for the county's new warning system has been announced.
