South Bend, IN Mobility & Curb Rules: E-Bike Classes (2026)

The definition sits inside Section 4-54, the license the City requires of any operator running a Shared Mobility System of rental bikes or scooters in the public right-of-way; it does not create a general classification for privately owned e-bikes bought and ridden outside that licensed system. Within the shared-system definition, an 'electric bicycle' is any bicycle equipped with a motor that assists while the rider pedals, or a bicycle with a throttle-actuated motor, as long as the assistance stops once the bike reaches twenty miles per hour, treating pedal-assist and throttle models the same rather than sorting them into separate speed tiers.

Every shared device must carry language visible to users stating that riders are encouraged to wear helmets, must follow traffic laws, must yield to pedestrians in the right-of-way, and must operate 'only in designated bike lanes, protected bike lin[e]s as marked within City sidewalks, or on multi-use bike paths,' with use on a sidewalk outside a protected lane, or anywhere it would impede a mobility-impaired pedestrian's access, expressly prohibited. Devices used after dark need a front lamp visible 500 feet ahead and a rear lamp visible 500 feet behind, plus a bell, horn, or other sound signal.

An operator needs a license from the license administrator, currently set at a $10,000 initial fee, before deploying any shared e-bike or scooter, and is jointly and severally liable for a user's traffic and parking violations. The license administrator can additionally regulate where a Shared Mobility System operates or where devices may be stored, and can order an unsafe or inoperable device removed from the right-of-way within two hours during the day or six hours overnight.