TL;DR:
- The speed limit in BRC is 5 mph. For everyone!
- Class 1 and 2 e-bikes are permitted in Black Rock City. Class 3 e-bikes are not allowed in BRC.
- If you are found speeding or riding an e-bike in an unsafe manner, or you leave the scene of an accident you were involved in, your bike (and maybe also you) could be evicted from the event.
- We must all look out for each other, be part of the solution, and support Burners being safe.
Black Rock City is built and inhabited by 80,000 creative and caring participants. As the nonprofit that supports this vibrant community, Burning Man Project aspires to nurture a culture of mutual respect and Civic Responsibility. In 2023, we experienced the worst accidents involving e-bikes to date. One injured participant required more than 20 stitches to their face, another was evacuated to Reno when their bladder was impaled, and multiple Burners were struck and left unconscious. In some cases, the e-bike operator just drove off.
This is entirely unacceptable.
In the run-up to the 2023 event, Burning Man Project discussed a range of ideas on how to end the speeding issue, including the possibility of banning e-bikes altogether. In the end, however, we didn’t want to make new rules, and we sincerely hoped a well-informed community would modify its behavior, as we believe that is always the best way forward. While some community members responded by being more responsible at the event, unfortunately, many did not.
So, in Black Rock City 2024, we are ramping up the efforts to curb reckless biking behaviors.
Class 3 bikes are no longer permitted in Black Rock City, period. If you are found speeding or riding an e-bike unsafely, depending on the severity of the incident or behavior, the consequences may include removal of your e-bike and/or you from BRC.
If you bring an e-bike to Black Rock City, you agree to operate under these parameters:
- BE RESPONSIBLE: The speed limit in Black Rock City is 5 miles per hour. This is to keep everyone safe.
- BE SAFE: Operate your e-bike safely, especially in crowded or high-traffic areas. Listen to your neighbors, who might give you feedback if you are going too fast!
- BE CONSIDERATE: Help injured parties receive proper medical attention after an accident.
Black Rock citizens and Burners everywhere excel at caring for each other, whether in the rain, dust storms or under any circumstance. Let’s continue to be the best for each other by traveling safely in our beloved city and behaving in ways that do not endanger fellow participants.
And once more, for the folks in the back…
- Do not bring a class 3 e-bike.
- Slow down — 5 mph, please.
- Take care of each other.
Finally, remember that it’s all about the journey and not just the destination. Dismount, explore, and enjoy the wonders of Black Rock City!
Let’s see how 2024 goes. If we are all part of the solution, there will be no need for more drastic action in the future.
Your friendly neighborhood Event Director,
– Louder, Charlie!
(Cover photo by Kate Beale)
If the rule is “ For everyone!”, how are people going to catch speeders? I guess road blocks? Because if the rangers are in “everyone”, they wouldn’t even be able to apprehend a bike going 6mph.
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REALLY? you wait until the last second to tell us this!!!
Who even knows what class their E bike is????? and you inform us this new limitation a month before the event…..
People bought E- bikes already for Burning Man…
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You know. All the e bikes there are class 3 or even higher, like 50 mph e motorcycles. Class 2 only go about 23 mph tops. Have to to confiscate at the gate.
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These new “guidelines” are toothless and will do nothing to curb the ridiculous behavior of many e-bike riders. Having said that, I don’t have a good answer for what to do about the situation. Perhaps the creation of separate e-bike “BM Ranger Bike Patrols” that are empowered to call LE to write tickets and impound the bikes of violators if necessary.
However, most of us don’t want more LE involvement, and as it’s BLM land, tickets and impounds may be unenforceable.
So, this is likely my last burn. I’ll pedal my pedal bike around the city and playa one last time, and I’ll leave the future to those willing to put up with the increasingly inconsiderate and dangerous e-bikers.
This is why we can’t have nice things.
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Great article. Thank you. I think it’s time to consider one wheeled modes of transportation too. Like the skateboarding devices etc…They go just as fast.
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I don’t understand how, after all that, BM can a I’ll allow any e-bikes. It seems irresponsible to not ban them completely, and a huge legal liability as well. If someone gets killed out there, BM is going to be held liable. Their waiver doesn’t cover gross negligence, which not banning e-bikes seems like it would be – I mean, if several people were knocked unconscious then it’s only a matter of time before someone dies it would seem.
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I absolutely agree with all the concerns about bikes, both human powered or electric. Don’t be a dick out there. But as I have said many times in discussing playa speed limit, it is difficult to ride any bike at 5 mph, on any surface but near impossible to ride at 5 mph on playa.
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Great point Willie. I did an experiment the other day on my ebike and tried to ride it at 5mph or less. It was difficult to even keep it upright on pavement let alone if I would have been on a sandy spot on the playa. Having said that, I still like the 5mph requirement knowing that just like on the highway people will go faster. As long as people are being safe and going “slow” but fast enough to keep upright then I doubt anyone doing 8 mph is going to get in trouble.
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As you, yourself discovered, it is nearly impossible to ride a bike at 5 MPH or less. Yet you still “like” the 5 MPH limit? Basically, this means everyone is breaking the law. You are basically creating a rule that cannot be enforced and making everyone a rule-breaker. What’s the REAL speed limit? It’s up to anyone’s guess. An unenforceable law is worse than no law at all. One of the things that drives me nuts about burns in general is that the leadership makes rules that it has no intention of really enforcing, and people who follow the rules feel like chumps.
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When I read the title I thought, great, they aren’t just singling out ebike riders for riding too fast or being unsafe. Unfortunately I was tricked into thinking this as the article then goes on to just call out E-BIKE riders. i.e.
BE SAFE: Operate your E-BIKE safely and.
If you are found speeding or riding an E-BIKE unsafely, depending on the severity of the incident or behavior, the consequences may include removal of your e-bike and/or you from BRC.
As someone that witnessed MANY non ebikes riding way faster than 5mph as well as in an unsafe manner I find this article to be very neive and pointing blame at one group while coddling others. How about we just have bike rules for all regardless of the type? How about we just say if you are found riding your bike unsafely you are subject to these penalties.
I was witness to a regular bike rider riding unsafely last year as they crashed into my friends ebike (and yes he was going 5mph or less). So lets drop the us vs them mentality and just call out bike riders in general for unsafe riding and speeding. Good grief.
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Agree with you 100%, well stated with reasonable logic.
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This is exactly what I was thinking. Well said. This is burning man, all bike riders should try and ride safely and all people wear lights when they walk around the city at night to stay safe and have more fun!
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Couldn’t agree more. Also agree with a previous poster that 5 mph is a very difficult speed to maintain balance. Especially on Playa. We have Class 2 ebikes but only use the throttle to assist in taking off. We also use the lowest pedal assist setting available. We all need to do better going forward.
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“As someone that witnessed MANY non ebikes riding way faster than 5mph as well as in an unsafe manner I find this article to be very neive [sic] and pointing blame at one group while coddling others.”
There are lot more non-ebikes than ebikes, yet I saw lot more ebikes going too fast than non-ebikes. So pointing blame at ebikes is appropriate. Not pointing at ebikes would be unfair since that’s the main problem.
“When it takes effort to move forward, a person who is inebriated is less way likely to crank it up to 20mph.”
Exactly. A drunk and high person + ebike = disaster.
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The fact of the matter is e-bikes not only go considerably faster, but they weight a whole hell of a lot more as well. Those two factors mixed together make potential outcomes for accidents far more dangerous. (The same reason many places ban them from downhill mountain biking…mass kills).
While everyone should be careful, the potential for really serious accidents is just much higher with e-bikes.
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(Because if the rangers are in “everyone”, they wouldn’t even be able to apprehend a bike going 6mph.)
Rangers carry radios and radios are considerably faster than 5mph
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Glad to see attention finally given to this. We’ve yelled at e-bike speeders to slow down. We’re either ignored or told to fuck off. Interesting to note that one-wheels, etc. are not mentioned. We shall see.
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How do I know if my bike is a class 3 e-bike?
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Alfred,
Class l….no throttle only, when pedaling your wattage will got zero at 20 mph, meaning no longer giving pedal assist
Class ll..Has throttle assist that will clamp at 20 mph, lean bike over on kickstand and give full throttle, it should limit at 20 mph and also has the 2nd half of above
Class lll…..bike will continue to provide pedal assist up to 28 mph.
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Thank you for your explanation of the categories. The tricycle E bike that I purchased for Burning Man because I need to have a bike of this type because of physical limitations, only goes up to 12 miles an hour. With three wheels it is very capable of being stable at 5 Miles an hour.
I would like to comment that if the 5 miles an hour applies to everything not just bicycles then why do some of the infrastructure vehicles driven by people working with the Rangers and administration routinely travel at more than 5 miles an hour. This does not set a good example of The rules being important..
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I was at BM last year and yes there were many people with e-bikes that were going way to fast. I don’t think you should get rid of e-bike. I’d like to bring one myself but sorry to say just like any city in the world has speed limit signs. You may have to do that. BM is such a wide open space that people forget there is a speed limit and let it rip. Speed limit signs can be artsy and decorative but will put that reminder in everybodies view. Please think about it.
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Preventing unsafe bike riding is important despite the motto “safety third” that I live by every day out there. But, one of the best ways to prevent unsafe biking would be to get rid of the 5mph speed limit for human powered bikes and institute a speed limit of: ride the safe speed for the circumstances. And then recognizing the difference between human versus e-bike requires different rules for e-bikes.
I suggest this counterintuitive solution for human powered bikes because 5mph is so slow that people don’t take it seriously. Jogging is between 4 to 6 mph. That means a good number of the burning man marathoners are violating the speed limit. Also, bikes are more stable the faster you go. 5mph is a speed at which many bicyclists are a little bit wobbly. We’ve likely seen this and experienced this, at slow speeds your front tire wobbles a little back and forth to keep you steady. Look around at the burn and you’ll see slow riders doing this all over.
And people don’t really pay attention to the limit. If you look anywhere in the city at any moment you see countless people violating the 5mph limit. Again, all it takes is riding at a light jogging pace and you’re over the limit. When a rule is absurd, people ignore the rule. And that is why a vast majority of burners ignore the 5mph speed limit and go faster.
The solution really is as easy as changing the speed limit to ask people to ride a safe speed for the circumstances and their personal condition. When Robot Heart ties up to Distrikt (well not this year because Distrikt isn’t coming) there are enough people on the streets that we should all get off our bikes and walk them. But, if we’re in deep playa, its day time, clear, we’re sober, and no one else is around 20mph is easily a safe speed. Or even 30, you’re only endangering yourself out there–safety third. If you’re drunk or high even on an open street you should go slower. If you’re cruising and looking at art go slower. If you’re sober, paying close attention, and on an open street, you can go a little faster. White out dust storm, stop biking and walk. The safe speed is so condition dependent on playa that a universal 5mph speed limit makes little sense.
All the 5mph limit does is create ability for authorities to arbitrarily enforce the limit against those they wish to target since so many people are breaking the rule. When a law prohibits behavior that most people engage in, it gives authorities a way to discriminate and enforce the rules against the people they choose to enforce the rule against. The likely result of a 5mph speed limit is that it will only be enforced against those who aren’t riding a safe speed for the circumstances (which is why this should be the rule) or those who the authorities wish to hassle.
E-bikes are a different beast though and should have different rules. On a human powered bike people will naturally limit their speed based on their skill and condition. This means that human powered bikes will usually end up going a fairly safe speed for the circumstances naturally. When it takes effort to move forward, a person who is inebriated is less way likely to crank it up to 20mph. Likewise, a person who is cruising looking around at art, is unlikely to be cranking super hard on their bike to go fast, they are more likely to be wobbling back and forth at a low speed.
But, on an e-bike, you can accidentally increase speed easily. A person looking around at art or having a conversation with a friend and not paying attention in front of them on an e-bike can easily accidentally get up to 15mph, especially if they’re inebriated. This makes it much easier to be dangerous on an e-bike than a human powered bike.
One solution for this is to be much more strict with the rules for e-bikes than for human powered bikes and make this difference in treatment an official policy. Limiting e-bikes to 5mph in the city and 10mph in open playa is more reasonable than it is for human powered bikes. Also noting that e-bikes are likely to be stopped if they aren’t paying attention would be a great thing. If e-bike riders know they are more likely to face enforcement they will hopefully ride more carefully and some people might choose to go back to human powered to avoid the extra scrutiny.
Anyway, just my way too long of thoughts on this from a long time lawyer burner.
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You make some excellent points Anton. As an ebike rider there are a couple of points I would like to make. My wife and I are both 67 and riding a regular bike in the heat out on the playa can be very difficult. I have also tried riding my ebike at no more than 5 mph and it is very difficult to keep upright even on pavement let alone some of the soft sandy conditions you find on the streets and out on the playa. If ebikes are restricted to using 1st gear ONLY then their speed can be severely limited and problem solved without using a specific speed limit number. Again, 5mph is not realistic as that is not even fast enough to remain safe. Thanks for the great input.
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This is well reasoned and very true about the difference between human powered and any motorized mode of transportation. Having separate rules for human powered, conditions determined, and for all forms of motorized, speed determined, would be a great next step in working out this obvious problem. It still depends on people who are considerate, which we all know we should be. Those who are not should have privileges removed.
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Why don’t you publish for all of us the same criteria you will be giving to the Gate, so people can tell which bikes will and won’t be allowed through? Are you adopting the definitions that have been adopted by many states, which means Class 3 have NO THROTTLE? (See https://www.bosch-ebike.com/us/everything-about-the-ebike/stories/three-class-ebike-system#:~:text=Class%201%3A%20eBikes%20that%20are,assisted%20speed%20of%2028%20mph.)
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This is a real issue but should have been announced *before* ticket sales began.
One wheel’s and other battery powered devices are also a real issue.
5 mph is too low. About ~7 mph is the lowest reasonable speed. Many riders lack the skill to ride on playa at 5 mph.
Requiring ebikes to have lights, bells, a speedometer and a signed agreement to stay under 7 or 8 mph, presented at gate for entrance would do a world of good (the agreement would be educational). There could be a pull off on gate road for ebikes to get a form if they didn’t pre-print one. Anyone hitting gate without it would get sent to d-lot to get if done before re-joining gate line.
Requiring riders to stay at the scene of accidents is absolutely the right move. As little as I want more enforcement we need an army of rangers to educate, and if needed, to enforce this.
There could also be an educated ebike rider bracelet available. Passing a very short test could earn the right to go up to 10 mph, in appropriate conditions, and a warning instead of a confiscation for minor violations of the ebike policy. Those without would the bracelet be limited to 6 mph. Minor speeding violations would require them to get a bracelet to get their bikes back.
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I have a class 3 bike and responsibly bike safely. I am disabled, but can traverse the Playa with an e-bike. I
t looks like I will have to cancel BM this year for that very reason. I live on a fixed income and cannot afford to invest another 1k plus in another e-bike. Thanks for destroying my BM experience and all I have done for BM., including a show recently of my BM photography for the community in San Diego., representing the BM experience and community. You really want others like me to drive my car around the playa with a disability pass?
You have totally ignored seniors and those with disabilities that can only traverse the Playa with assistance of an e-bike.
Anyone want to help a Burner, now ready to cancel and have to sell my ticket and discard a hard earned Media pass?
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Please email dmv@burningman.org. In the spirit of Radical Inclusion, we absolutely support persons with disabilities. The DMV reviews requests related to accessibility vehicles in Black Rock City.
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Ban one wheels. Too fast. Too much dust. They suck!
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E-bikes are motorized vehicles. Vehicles not art. A 500W bike puts out more power than a professional cyclist.
I used to bring a snowboard with giant tires powered by a kite I would hold. Slow but fun. That contraption was banned in the 90’s. I am shocked to see the endless problem of people speeding across the playa and through camps on motor vehicles.
We have all had close calls. Someone will get killed.
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The danger of so many bikes cruising around the streets and playa in all directions around obstacles, in the wind, heat, dust, darkness etc. is real. I agree that speeding bikes need to be stopped. I agree that the focus should be on e-bikes as regular bikes can go dangerously fast as well. For some an e-bike may be the only option. There are aging burners battling the physical ailments that come with it for example arthritis. I love Burning Man. It rejuvenates my heart, mind, and spirit. I don’t want to give it up I want to visit my favorite sitting until I die, but with my arthritis, I can barely keep up with my Camp when on excursions. Besides the physical pain of riding a bike for hours on end, I was constantly nervous of losing my friends or they were constantly waiting on me. I’m bringing an e-bike this year, because I physically and emotionally need it to get around. Maybe take the negative focus off of e-bikes in general. Come up with a few more security measures, for example, street lanes, lit signs, yellow lights at intersections… I don’t know…. But if you take away e-bikes there will be a lots of Burners left out and that’s not Radical Inclusion.
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I meant to say that I do not agree that the focus should be on e-bikes. It should be on the drivers of bikes as all bikes can go well above the 5 mile speed limit. For some, an e-bike is necessary to continue to be able to “come home”
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As an aging veteran Burner, I will be riding my ebike – responsibly – this year. After a nearly lethal bout of pneumonia and the same in the early COVID era, my ability to enjoy the event was severely restricted last year by my inability to ride my pedal bike because of a lack of endurance. Please take this in consideration in future discussions of banning ebikes.
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All,
If you need a vehicle due to mobility issues, you should email dmv@burningman.org to discuss.
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A DIFFERENT SOLUTION: Register all E-Bikes & give them a License plate that has large, reflective, easy to read letters/numbers. The license plate will be easy to look up for those wishing to report a problem. Each bike will be registered to a specific person (& their address on the Playa as well as their default world address) & they will be responsible for their bike’s actions.
E-Bikes should be registered & a Fee charged to bring them into the event, just like every other motorized vehicle. They ARE a motorized vehicle & it is a privilege to bring them NOT a right.
The Fees collected can be used to support new services that are required (Registration, printing of plates, enforcement etc.) Plates can be picked up at DMV (perhaps a special DMV just for E-Bikes!) after an inspection of the vehicle for working lights, brakes, etc.
Burning Man is an evolving event & we need to adjust our rules to accommodate safety for all new additions as we have always done in the past.
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I love how the evolution of Burning Man has pretty much been the reinvention of the modern administrative state.
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Thank you for the recommendation I think it’s a good idea to have special education and possibly ID for E Bikes. (of course they’re not the only ones that caused problems) If there is a decision to have special requirements and licenses I hope they do it very soon because I and two or three others in my camp will be bringing E-bikes. It would certainly be more efficient to be able to download information and fill out forms ahead of time
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Linda,
I think you have a great idea. License plates would also help locate misplaced and ‘borrowed’ bikes that go missing. It would also be cool to have a BRC bike license plate in the default.
You are right, BRC evolves, some changes are uncomfortable at first. In the 90’s I had to register my 35mm film camera with BM media and wear a laminated permit around my neck and ask for permission to take a photo of anyone. Couldn’t even hang a gallery show of BRC photos without having the images approved by BM. Privacy used to be a big focus. If you read the terms of agreement today, it’s the opposite. Now you have to assume your image will be captured and used and shared. I don’t see an alternative to that change given how the world changed over that period of time.
I like your idea! Fees used to help less physically mobile people to have more access at BRC would be great.
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The concept of some kind of registration for e-bikes is certainly something that has been (and continues to be) discussed.
There are significant challenges with this concept.
For reference:
Each year the DMV receives around 900 Mutant Vehicle applications and around 400 Accessibility Vehicle applications.
To process these 1100 applications takes a few months of active involvement of dozens of volunteers plus year-round oversight. Opening up the current system (or one like it) to possibly tens of thousands of e-bikes would be well out of the scope of the current system and would involve standing up an entirely new method of licensing.
TL;DR It would take a LOT of effort and resources to set up e-bike registration.
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Do you know the Nevada State law?
1. If a person fails to stop after a collision and remain at the scene as required, then the person can be charged with a category B felony.
2. Causing only property damage is a misdemeanor and a penalty of up to 6 months in jail and/or $1,000 in fines.
3. Causing an injury or death is a category B felony and a penalty of 2 to 20 years in prison and $2,000 to $5,000 in fines.
If anyone operating an E-bike causes an injury or death or leaves the scene after a collision they can be prosecuted for a category B felony and be civily liable. I suggest you stress the legal implcations in your next post about E-bikes.
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Can we also stop all vehicles from speeding on the open playa? Including staff golf carts and trucks? I’ve had as many close calls from them as from bikes.
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my wife and I are semi disabled senior citizens and we use are ebikes to get around as are pedal bikes are too painful to ride . So now we are getting caught up in system because of ALL the younger newbeys tearing up the playa along with the ones on those really fast one wheels! We have always loved the 5 mph speed limit because ALL of black rock city is a joy to see! So going slow is a blessing! but if we can’t use are ebikes I don’ think we can return to BM.
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Hi Anthony, please email dmv@burningman.org. The DMV reviews requests related to accessibility vehicles in Black Rock City.
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Can we address the elephant in the room here? 5mph is not a realistic speed limit for bicycles or other PTVs in general. A human powered push bicycle simply goes faster than that on flat ground with no wind.
I think it’s great that larger vehicles have a 5mph speed limit, and that’s what makes burning man so great. The bicycles pass the art cars because they’re going faster!
Knowing this, it is unrealistic for e-bikes to not go the same speed as push bikes. People are riding with their friends, and they’re not going to ride 5mph while their friends ride 10mph.
The bicycle & PTV speed limit needs to be 10 or 15mph to reflect the speeds people go on bicycles anyway, and THEN e-bike riders will actually have a reason to stay within the limit and enforcement can mean something.
Once you’re “speeding” at 10mph, it’s a slippery slope to just go 20mph…which is where the danger zone starts.
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5 MPH applies to everyone. Hahahahahaha!! If only Burning Man Department of Public Works (DPW) would apply this rule to themselves. The WORST speeders on the Playa are DPW staff. The 5 MHP is such a joke when DPW drivers have absolutely no inhibition about ripping down the roads at 20 or 30 MPH.
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This decision is bad and the specifics so poorly thought out (go try riding any bike at 5mph in deep playa and see how it feels…) you motivated me to actually leave a comment. Sort of impressive. As many others have said dropping this policy 1 month before the burn and screwing responsible riders out of the money they invested in their bikes is especially cruel in this economic climate. Burning Man Org needs to wake up before the event descends further into a bloated nanny state make work circus. We don’t need more power hungry drone cops and layers and layers of policies that are even more restrictive than the normal cities we live in. Go to any city in America and tell everyone they need to ride 5 miles an hour lol.
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5mph is unrealistic, so it’s widely ignored. 5mph for motor vehicles makes sense, but how about 10mph for bikes & trikes?
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SO, class 3 is banned because the pedal assist stops at 28mph and class 2 stops at 20mph. Both speeds that arent allowed anyways. thats the difference between 2 and 3. this rule is dumb
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