Micromobility Ordinance Update

At a glance

Based on auto-generated captions; names and details may be misheard.

What: an update to city ordinances on bicycles, e-bikes, pedestrian conveyances and related devices; the current code dates to 2012.
Where it stands: presented 2026-10-19. The mayor said the consensus was to move forward, possibly adding a few items.
Next: staff work with the legal team on revised language; staff estimated a few months, and the mayor hoped for faster. Related pages: High-Speed Pedestrian Conveyances and Sidewalk Riding in Business Districts.

Jeff Wiggins said vulnerable road users are 4 to 5 percent of Des Moines crashes but about 50 percent of deaths and serious injuries. From 2022 to 2025 e-bike crash ER visits rose about 1,000 percent (hospitals cannot separate e-bikes from e-motos).
Neighboring suburbs have recently adopted or considered their own rules; Des Moines expects others to follow its lead. Staff say about 95 percent of content is similar metro-wide.

Stay close to state definitions: e-bikes (classes 1 to 3) count as bicycles; pedestrian conveyances (up to 750 W) count as pedestrians.
Seven items not in state or city code today: change lanes to pass, 3 feet lateral passing distance in shoulders and bike lanes, right-arm signal for right turns, door-zone protection, far-right exemptions, a "dead red" allowance at undetected signals, and better bike lane operations (no driving or parking in them).
Items deliberately left out: Idaho stop, scooter share, a 20 mph trail speed limit, forward lighting and helmet rules, parental fines.

A member worried slow devices such as skateboards taking a lane downtown would frustrate drivers; the city manager suggested a distinction for roads with marked lanes.
Parental fines and point-of-sale rules (Orange County, California; Minnesota) were raised; staff said they are better handled at the state level but can be added if council wants.
Members stressed education, enforcement difficulty, regular revisiting of the ordinance, and pushing for consistent state rules; the Iowa Bicycle Coalition has proposed draft state language.

About 22 minutes across 1 meeting (from transcript timestamps; approximate).

Meeting	Minutes
2026-10-19 - City Council Work Session	22

2026-10-19 - City Council Work Session — presentation of the proposed bicycle and pedestrian conveyance ordinance; council consensus to move forward with possible additions (about 22 minutes).