Waco, TX Mobility & Curb Rules: E-Bike Classes (2026)

Chapter 25, Article XII of the Waco Code of Ordinances, retitled from "Bicycles" to "Transportation Devices and Shared Mobility Devices" by Ordinance No. 2019-287 on April 30, 2019, is where the city sets riding rules for e-bikes. Section 25-1 defines an "electric bicycle, or E-bike" as a bicycle propelled by an electric motor, alone or with pedaling, that cannot exceed 20 miles per hour on motor power alone and does not weigh more than 100 pounds; anything heavier or faster falls outside the definition and into the separate, more heavily regulated "motor vehicle" category. E-bikes are then regulated alongside bicycles, electric scooters and shared mobility devices as a single "transportation device" class rather than being split into tiered classes.

Section 25-298 sets the actual where-you-can-ride rule: no one may ride a transportation device on a sidewalk within a business district, and no rider age 12 or older may ride one on any sidewalk anywhere in the city, business district or not. That leaves streets, shared-use paths, and (for riders under 12, outside business districts) sidewalks as the lawful surfaces. Section 25-300 opens shared-use paths to transportation devices but requires riders to always yield the right-of-way to pedestrians there. Section 25-297 separately restricts parking: against the curb in a rack, or against a building, so as to minimally obstruct pedestrian traffic. Section 25-296 makes a parent or guardian responsible if they knowingly let a minor break any of these rules.