Guest Column
Tina Babajanians
Candidate
Newport Beach City Council District 1
I’m running for City Council. So why am I emailing San Diego about e–bikes?
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Tina Babajanians, candidate for Newport Beach City Council District 1
On the Balboa Peninsula, an e-bike can zip past you before you have time to decide whether it was an e-bike at all. Was that a bicycle with a motor? A much faster electric motorcycle? And, more urgently, was the child riding it wearing a helmet?
As I’ve worked on e-bike safety, I keep coming back to a question: If the problem crosses city lines, why would the solution stop at one?
Newport Beach can teach safe riding and enforce the rules it has. But California law does not currently authorize Newport Beach to set its own age limits for Class 1 or Class 2 e-bikes. Marin and San Diego counties obtained state authorization for youth e-bike pilot programs. Orange County should have the chance to consider a pilot suited to our communities, too.
So, I wrote a policy briefing, began contacting Orange County legislators and invited residents to ask their assemblymembers to take up the issue. My proposal has three connected parts: pursue state legislation, reach parents with useful information before they buy a bike and give cities better ways to measure whether their efforts work.
Then I learned about a part of San Diego’s work that deserves more attention: its public health approach. A parent may never attend a city meeting about e-bikes. They may, however, ask their child’s doctor what kind of bike is appropriate for their age. As a speech-language pathologist and a parent, I know how much a timely conversation with a trusted healthcare professional can matter.
On Monday (Sept. 28), I emailed public health leaders in San Diego and Orange counties to ask whether we could explore a similar effort here, including e-bike safety guidance at pediatric well-visits and education for parents. On Tuesday morning (Sept. 29), Dr. Sayone Thihalolipavan, San Diego County’s Public Health Officer, replied that he was connecting with an Orange County health leader to discuss the possibility.
That is one conversation. It is not a new county program, and it is not a bill. But it’s progress: The people with experience doing this work are now talking to people who could help shape it here.
I’m also working to connect the legislative side. San Diego’s pilot offers an example for Orange County assemblymembers to examine, while Marin’s approach raises useful questions about age, throttle-equipped bikes and education-first enforcement. Orange County should study both, listen to families and riders and decide what fits.
None of this requires me to wait for Election Day. I’m a candidate for Newport Beach City Council, and I’m already making calls, writing the emails, doing the research and connecting people across jurisdictions. Imagine what we could accomplish with a council seat and a stronger platform for that work.
We can welcome e-bikes and take their risks seriously. We can keep young people riding while giving parents clearer guidance and making our streets safer for everyone who shares them.
That work belongs to all of us, regardless of whom you vote for. If you want to help, read my Orange County e-bike safety proposal and use the letter there to contact your assemblymember.
