Concern is growing across the Denver metro over e-bike and e-motorcycle safety as school lets out for summer — and residents say the problem is getting worse.
Riders are taking over intersections, popping wheelies and showing up in force from Denver to Highlands Ranch to Aurora, with many of those involved being teenagers.
▶️ WATCH: Denver7's Adria Iraheta follows up with residents and officials as concerns over e-bikes and e-motos grows
Aurora resident Toni Shelton said she has seen riders going in the opposite direction of traffic.
"My concern is for their safety and the driver's safety, right?" Shelton said.
Fellow Aurora resident Franklin Jackson said the trend is moving in the wrong direction.
"It just seems to only be increasing, and now, as you embark upon summer of ’26, I'm concerned," Jackson said.
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Aurora Police Spokesperson Agent Kristopher McDowell said the department expects the situation to worsen in the coming months.
"Organically, just with the summer and school heading out, teenagers being more available, we're going to see a rise in it," McDowell said.
Back in April, Aurora police said solutions, like fining parents of kids caught driving recklessly on two wheels, were not yielding the results they had hoped for.
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Those fines start at a minimum of $250.
Now the department is shifting its focus to education.
Officers in APD’s patrol division now carry around pamphlets to help with education and enforcement.
"I think our efforts at this point have just been to try to educate parents and even kids as to what is legal and what isn't legal," McDowell said.
Many city and county websites, like the City of Aurora, now have detailed breakdowns on the different types of electric bikes — and whether they're street legal.
Part of the challenge is how easily some of these vehicles can be purchased — requiring just a few clicks online. McDowell said dirt bikes and off-highway vehicles are not street legal.
"If it doesn't have pedals and the engine size is above 750 watts, it's not going to be legal anywhere in the city," McDowell said.
Cities and counties across the Front Range are experimenting with various solutions to find something that creates lasting change.
Douglas County officials, for instance, are considering a new ordinance targeting certain electric dirt bikes and off-highway vehicles. Thornton City Council is considering an update to existing ordinance on e-bikes and motorized vehicles that would strengthen careless riding rules and clarify where certain vehicles can operate on trails and sidewalks.
Enforcement has proven difficult across departments in the region.
"They can elude us quite easily by taking sidewalks or going in between houses," McDowell said.
A teen on one of these bikes recently led Greenwood Village police on a chase. Police said he was arrested and his bike was impounded.
Two other teens were cited for careless driving and popping wheelies in a busy shopping center parking lot.
The Greenwood Village Police Department said it, too, is emphasizing both education and enforcement as they make contact with riders and parents about the rules of the road.
"I think about how are these kids getting access to these vehicles, where are the parents involved in all of this?" Jackson said.
While tackling the problem doesn’t have a clear solution, some hope to have a say in what comes next.
"They have photo radar, maybe you adjust the photo radar for the bikes too, and the cameras that you use, traffic lights, maybe you use that for the e-bikes as well," Shelton said. "I just hope that they, you know, look at it more seriously and really start reaching out to the community and getting some feedback on potential solutions.”
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