Two juveniles riding an electric bicycle were seriously injured Thursday evening when their e-bike collided with a passenger vehicle at the intersection of North Midland Avenue and Schepis Avenue in Saddle Brook, authorities said. The crash happened around 6:24 p.m. Both juveniles were taken to a hospital for evaluation, and no further details about their conditions have been released.
According to Daily Voice, a preliminary investigation found that the e-bike struck the passenger vehicle, though police have not released further information about how the collision unfolded. The outlet reported that both juveniles suffered serious injuries in the crash. Authorities have not provided additional details about their conditions.
Multiple Agencies Assisting With Investigation
The Bergen County Prosecutor's Office, the Bergen County Sheriff's Office and the Fair Lawn Police Department are all assisting Saddle Brook authorities with the investigation, the station's report noted. The crash remains under investigation, and no additional information about the circumstances leading up to the collision has been made public.
The Saddle Brook crash is one of several e-bike incidents reported across Bergen County and New Jersey in recent months. In June, a 15-year-old Paramus boy was hospitalized after his e-bike collided with a gray Tesla at West Ridgewood Avenue and Roosevelt Boulevard, according to Patch. Earlier this month, a 14-year-old girl was seriously injured when the e-bike she was riding collided with a minivan in the Mays Landing section of Hamilton Township, as reported by NJ Today.
A Statewide Pattern Of Young Riders In Danger
The Saddle Brook crash arrives amid what has become a troubling pattern for New Jersey families. A 12-year-old Princeton boy died in April after the electric motorbike he was riding collided with a car, and a 15-year-old e-bike rider in Middletown was killed in June after being struck by a vehicle near Newman Springs Road and Jumping Brook Road, according to NJ.com. In September 2025, two 17-year-olds riding e-bikes were killed in a Cranford hit-and-run after being struck by a vehicle traveling about 70 mph.
The surge in incidents tracks with a broader boom in e-bike ownership. U.S. e-bike sales jumped from just over 250,000 in 2019 to an estimated 1.7 million in 2024, NJ.com reported. The same outlet noted that at least three children had died on e-bikes or e-motos in New Jersey since April, and that the American College of Surgeons considers e-bike-related injuries widely underreported, since law enforcement agencies don't yet keep a specific statewide count of e-bike injuries and deaths.
New Rules, Conflicting Details
New Jersey has moved to tighten e-bike regulations as the devices have proliferated on streets, sidewalks and trails. According to the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, operators must be at least 15 years old and hold either an e-bike license or a valid driver's license, except that operators of rented low-speed electric bikes under 21 mph are not required to possess either license. The commission describes assisted speeds capped at 28 miles per hour on a flat surface. The Rutgers Policy Lab has noted that as e-bikes and similar micromobility devices grow more popular, municipalities have begun adopting their own restrictions on where they can be used, including parks, sidewalks, trails and other public property.
Separately, state data cited by the New Jersey Department of Transportation indicates that people who walk and bike in the state face injury and fatality rates much higher than the national average. No additional details about Thursday's Saddle Brook crash, including the circumstances that preceded it or the juveniles' conditions, have been released as the investigation continues.
