National City, CA Mobility & Curb Rules: Bike Lane Rules (2026)

The bicycle rules sit in Chapter 11.52 of the National City Municipal Code, inside Title 11 (Vehicles and Traffic). Section 11.52.010 defines a bicycle as a human-powered device with wheels at least twenty inches in diameter and a frame size of at least fourteen inches, and it adds three electric bicycle classes. Class 1 and Class 2 e-bikes stop providing assistance at twenty miles per hour and are legal on any paved surface where a regular bike is allowed. Class 3 e-bikes stop assisting at twenty-eight miles per hour, their operators must be sixteen or older and wear a helmet, and they are prohibited from Class I multi-use bike paths unless a local ordinance specifically authorizes them.

Section 11.52.020 is the operative riding rule. Sidewalk riding is unlawful in any business or residence district, with one exception: the council can authorize riding on the sidewalks of residential districts or areas by resolution, with limits on hours and specific purposes. The same section reaches every street, alley, park or other public place and any path or lane set aside for the exclusive use of bicycles, so a rider in a marked bike lane owes the chapter the same compliance as a rider on the street. Chapter 11.52 itself contains no provision about parking or stopping a motor vehicle in a bike lane.

Enforcement falls to the National City Police Department. Section 11.52.030 lets the Chief of Police take and impound the bicycle of any juvenile or person under the age of twenty-one found violating the chapter, hold it for a period not to exceed thirty days, and notify the parents or guardian or other person having custody and control of the minor during that time.