Just a few days ago, I watched in horror as my five-year-old daughter came dangerously close to being struck by an e-bike while walking on the sidewalk. The young rider, who wasn’t wearing a helmet, also nearly fell onto the road while trying to swerve around her.

For a parent, there are few things more frightening than seeing a motorized vehicle speeding toward your child in a space that should be safe for pedestrians. Unfortunately, this is becoming an increasingly serious public-safety concern. High-powered e-bikes, e-scooters and similar electric mobility devices that exceed Ontario's legal limits are readily available through retail stores and online marketplaces.

Ontario already has rules governing these vehicles.

For an e-bike to qualify as a power-assisted bicycle in Ontario, it must generally have a motor of no more than 500 watts and a maximum assisted speed of 32 km/h, along with required safety equipment.

Electric kick-scooters permitted under Ontario's provincial pilot are limited to 500 watts, a maximum speed of 24 km/h and a maximum weight of 45 kg. Riders must also comply with provincial requirements and applicable municipal bylaws.

Despite these limits, consumers can easily purchase devices advertised as e-bikes or e-scooters that substantially exceed Ontario's permitted power and speed limits, including vehicles capable of travelling at speeds comparable to motorcycles.

The problem is that Ontario's current regulatory framework places much of the responsibility on the rider after the vehicle has already been purchased.  That is not enough. Retailers, distributors and online marketplaces should not be permitted to market and sell a vehicle as a legal e-bike or e-scooter when that vehicle does not meet Ontario's requirements for that category.

Ontario also has existing electrical product-safety requirements that prohibit the sale or advertisement of certain unapproved electrical products. These laws should be actively and consistently enforced against retailers, importers, distributors and online sellers offering unsafe or non-compliant e-bikes, e-scooters, batteries and chargers.

We call on the Government of Ontario to:
1. Actively enforce existing e-bike and e-scooter laws, including applicable power, speed, equipment, age and operating requirements.
2 Introduce a clear Ontario-wide prohibition on selling or advertising non-compliant vehicles as legal e-bikes or e-scooters when they exceed the limits applicable to those vehicle categories.
3. Actively inspect and investigate retailers, distributors and importers selling high-powered or non-compliant electric bikes and scooters in Ontario.
4. Issue meaningful fines and enforcement orders against retailers and sellers that knowingly sell or advertise non-compliant devices as road-legal e-bikes or e-scooters.
5. Hold online marketplaces accountable for products sold to Ontario consumers. Platforms should be required to verify that listed e-bikes and e-scooters comply with Ontario requirements and promptly remove prohibited or misleading listings.
6. Fine online platforms that repeatedly allow prohibited or non-compliant devices to be sold to Ontario residents after they have been notified of violations.
7. Require clear disclosure at the point of sale of a device's maximum motor power, maximum assisted speed and whether it legally qualifies for use as an e-bike or e-scooter on Ontario public roads.
8. Strengthen enforcement of Ontario's electrical product-safety laws against unapproved or unsafe e-bikes, e-scooters, batteries and charging equipment.
9. Restrict the sale of modification devices or software designed to defeat legally required speed or power limits for vehicles intended for public-road use.
10. Increase enforcement against dangerous riding in pedestrian areas, particularly on sidewalks and other locations where motorized vehicles are prohibited.
11. Launch a province-wide public-awareness campaign explaining the difference between legal e-bikes and e-scooters and high-powered vehicles that may require licensing, registration, insurance or different operating rules.

These measures are not intended to discourage the responsible use of legal e-bikes and e-scooters. Properly regulated electric transportation can provide an affordable, convenient and environmentally friendly way to travel.

The issue is the easy availability of vehicles that do not comply with Ontario's requirements, combined with inadequate enforcement against the businesses and platforms profiting from their sale. Enforcement should not begin only after a dangerous vehicle has already been sold and someone has been injured.

Ontario must address the problem at its source. Retailers and online marketplaces that sell these products to Ontario residents must be held accountable, and significant penalties should apply when businesses knowingly or repeatedly sell vehicles that do not comply with provincial requirements.

Our sidewalks and pedestrian spaces must remain safe for children, seniors, people with disabilities and everyone who relies on them.

We urge the Government of Ontario to enforce existing laws, close gaps in the current regulatory framework, prohibit the sale and misleading advertising of non-compliant e-bikes and e-scooters, and impose meaningful fines on retailers and online platforms that continue to sell them.

Please sign this petition and call on the Government of Ontario to protect pedestrians, hold sellers accountable and stop non-compliant e-bikes and e-scooters from being marketed and sold as legal vehicles in our province.