{"id":11708,"date":"2026-04-02T08:01:14","date_gmt":"2026-04-02T14:01:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sbbch.org\/?p=11708"},"modified":"2026-04-02T08:01:14","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T14:01:14","slug":"e-bikes-on-idaho-trails-boise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sbbch.org\/?p=11708","title":{"rendered":"E-bikes on Idaho Trails (Boise)"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Watch VIDEO<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

On a quiet foothills trail,<\/a>\u00a0the hum of an electric bike is becoming a more common sound.<\/p>\n

E-bikes are growing in popularity nationwide and are increasingly showing up across the\u00a0Ridge to Rivers\u00a0<\/a>trail system in Boise. But Trail Manager David Gordon says many riders are using them in places where they are not allowed.<\/p>\n

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\u201cE-bikes are an up-and-coming use across the country, really across the world, and on our trail system,\u201d Gordon said.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Despite signage posted throughout the system, Gordon said riders continue to bring e-bikes onto nonmotorized trails.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven though we\u2019ve got our trails signed everywhere, we\u2019re finding people riding e-bikes all over the place,\u201d Gordon said.<\/p>\n

Under current federal guidelines, e-bikes are classified as motorized vehicles. Because of that, they are only permitted on two motorized trails within the Ridge to Rivers system: Eighth Street Motorcycle Trail No. 4 and Femrites Patrol Trail No. 6.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re really still only allowed on our two motorized trails, because federally, they\u2019re still classified as a motorized vehicle,\u201d Gordon said.<\/p>\n

Gordon said the technology allows riders to travel farther and access areas that may otherwise be difficult to reach, which can lead to unintended impacts.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThere is a possibility that that leads to more effects on wildlife,\u201d Gordon said.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

He said a growing concern goes beyond traditional e-bikes to include electric motorcycles, which are heavier and capable of higher speeds.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re heavier, they go a lot faster,\u201d Gordon said.<\/p>\n

He said many of the riders using electric motorcycles are younger, including junior high and high school students. Some of the bikes can reach speeds of up to 30 miles per hour, creating safety risks on narrow, multi-use trails.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s lots of people out there \u2014 little kids, dogs, older people \u2014 anyone that can be out there not expecting something coming around like a little motorcycle at a high rate of speed,\u201d Gordon said.<\/p>\n

In addition to safety concerns, officials say the vehicles can cause damage when riders leave designated trails.<\/p>\n

\u201cThirty miles an hour is not uncommon, and they\u2019re heavier, and those are really a safety concern, as well as the fact that they can easily travel off trail,\u201d Gordon said.<\/p>\n

As the busy trail season approaches, Ridge to Rivers officials say enforcement and signage will continue, but they emphasize that protecting the system ultimately depends on users.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt takes the community to manage our trail system,\u201d Gordon said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Watch VIDEO On a quiet foothills trail,\u00a0the hum of an electric bike is becoming a more common sound. E-bikes are growing in popularity nationwide and are increasingly showing up across the\u00a0Ridge to Rivers\u00a0trail system in Boise. But Trail Manager David Gordon says many riders are using them in places where they are not allowed. \u201cE-bikes […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,15,50],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11708","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bchi-bcha","category-current-events","category-safety"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sbbch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11708","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sbbch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sbbch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sbbch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sbbch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11708"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sbbch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11708\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11710,"href":"https:\/\/sbbch.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11708\/revisions\/11710"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sbbch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11708"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sbbch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11708"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sbbch.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11708"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}