Carlsbad Unified School District has adopted its first set of comprehensive rules for bicycles, e-bikes and other electric mobility devices on school property, banning the devices outright for the district's youngest students while requiring older riders to complete safety training and obtain a permit before riding to campus. The policy also bans e-motos — electric mopeds, motorcycles and dirt bikes — for every grade level, district-wide.
The Board of Trustees adopted Board Policy 5142.04 and Administrative Regulation 5142.04 at its Sept. 14 meeting, and the rules took effect immediately following that vote, according to the North County Daily Star. District officials say e-bikes and e-motos have become increasingly popular among school-age riders, and that popularity brought new risks tied to higher speeds, heavier vehicles and inexperienced younger operators, as reported by Fox 5 San Diego.
Under the new rules, students in transitional kindergarten through fifth grade are barred from bringing e-bikes, e-motos or similar electric devices onto or near school property, per the district policy summary. Middle and high school students age 12 and older may bring a standard e-bike to campus, but only after completing district-approved safety training and obtaining a permit. The Carlsbad Unified School District website similarly states that students over age 12 who plan to ride to school and park on campus are required to obtain a CUSD Bicycle Permit — language that echoes, though phrases slightly differently than, the policy summary's framing of the age-12 threshold.
Permits, Training and a Sticker System
To get that permit, students must attend a CUSD-approved bike or e-bike safety course or presentation, submit an application along with proof of course attendance, and affix the district-issued permit sticker to their bike where it's visible. Students without that sticker will not be permitted to bring their bicycle onto any CUSD campus, the district's website states. Age limits apply within the permit system too: students must be at least 16 to operate a Class 3 e-bike, while riders ages 12 to 15 are limited to Class 1 or Class 2 models.
Traditional, human-powered bicycles remain welcome at every grade level, the district policy summary notes, with riders required to wear helmets and park in designated bicycle areas. Students under 17 who possess a bicycle must have a helmet with them regardless of age-based permit rules, per the district website. Once on campus, students must walk their bicycles and e-bikes rather than ride them, and they're responsible for locking and securing their bikes in designated parking areas — the district says it isn't responsible for damage or theft on campus or during travel to school-sponsored events.
A two-week grace period applies at the start of each school year, and new CUSD students get the same grace period starting on their first day of enrollment, according to the district website. Students are also advised to charge their e-bikes before arriving at school, since district outlets should not be used for charging.
Board Members Cite Safety as the Driving Force
Michele Tsutagawa Ward said every student should get to and from school safely, according to Fox 5 San Diego's reporting. She added that clear expectations, consistent education and appropriate accountability are needed when unsafe riding puts students or community members at risk, per the same outlet.
Violations will be handled through a progressive-response approach, starting with a warning and parent notification and moving up to suspension or revocation of e-bike privileges, the North County Daily Star reports. Serious or repeated violations can also lead to student discipline under California Education Code section 48900. Students who lose their riding privileges can regain them by repeating the required safety training, according to Fox 5 San Diego. The policy additionally allows the district to address serious off-campus conduct involving students traveling to or from school, including violations of the Carlsbad Municipal Code or California Vehicle Code, the North County Daily Star notes.
City and Police Partnership Behind the Policy
Carlsbad Unified developed the policy in partnership with the City of Carlsbad and the Carlsbad Police Department, and the guidelines are designed to align with Carlsbad Municipal Code 10.56 and state bicycle laws, per Fox 5 San Diego's report. The police department conducted a 60-day education period before moving to full enforcement, the outlet reports. Christie Calderwood said the department is working with Carlsbad Unified to reinforce e-bike safety information and education for students and families, adding that the shared goal is helping young riders understand the rules, make safer choices and prevent serious collisions.
Each school principal will establish site-level procedures for parking and for managing traffic during arrival and dismissal, according to the North County Daily Star. Staff and schools will continue coordinating with city officials and police on enforcement, education and community outreach, Fox 5 San Diego reports, and the district says it will communicate the bicycle and e-bike requirements through student handbooks, registration materials and other communications. Permit applications and information on approved safety courses are posted on the district's website.
Crash Numbers Behind the Push
The new policy follows years of climbing collision numbers tied to e-bikes in Carlsbad. The city tracked 127 collisions where an e-bike was at fault since 2022, and riders under 12 accounted for just 7%, or nine incidents, while riders ages 12 to 17 made up the majority, according to Fox 5 San Diego's earlier reporting on the city's Traffic Safety and Mobility Commission. The city separately reported a 233% rise in collisions involving bikes and e-bikes over a three-year span, with reported e-bike-involved crashes climbing from two in 2019 to eight in 2020, 33 in 2021 and 32 through July 2022, per Bicycle Retailer.
The trend extends statewide. E-bike riders were involved in at least 4,035 collisions in California from 2018 through 2024, and recorded injury crashes jumped to 1,566 in 2024 after showing none in 2018 or 2019, according to the Los Angeles Times. Riders age 14 or younger made up 15.8% of injured e-bike riders, the paper reported, citing a study also published in Trauma Surgery and Acute Care Open. Separately, the study found moderate-to-severe injuries in 15.8% of e-bike cases, compared with 11.9% of traditional-bicycle cases.
Other North County Districts Have Similar Rules
Carlsbad Unified isn't the first North County district to formalize e-bike rules. San Marcos Unified requires student riders at seven listed schools to get a permit and attend an in-person safety workshop with a parent or guardian, led by the Sheriff's Office, and bars students without a permit from parking on school grounds, according to San Marcos Unified School District. San Dieguito Union High School District requires a district-issued Bicycle Tag for all student riders, permits only Class 1 and Class 2 e-bikes, and requires students to dismount when entering the parking lot, per San Dieguito Union High School District.
Farther north, Santa Barbara Unified rolled out an expanded policy requiring safety videos, a parent signature and bike registration before students can get a campus-riding permit, with Class 3 e-bikes restricted to riders 16 and older, according to Noozhawk. That district's expanded rules are already in place at all of its junior high schools along with several high schools, the outlet reports.
