South Florida’s e-bike boom: As popularity rises, so do injuries
Citing a surge in reckless riding and pedestrian close-calls, some South Florida municipalities are launching safety campaigns or passing ordinances to regulate e-bikes on neighborhood streets and sidewalks.
E-bikes are experiencing a massive surge in popularity, nationwide and in South Florida. This rise, though, has been accompanied by a spike in accidents and emergency room visits, outpacing traditional bike risks, particularly among children and teens, who often suffer head injuries from riding faster than they can control, according to the American College of Surgeons.
At Memorial Healthcare System in southern Broward County, trauma alerts from e-bike accidents are spiking, signaling more severe injuries. The health system recorded a 178% increase in e-bike/e-scooter trauma alerts from 2024 to 2025, and that trend appears to be continuing in 2026. The majority of trauma patients are male.