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E-Cargo Bikes, E-Bikes & the Law: Passengers on Electric Bikes

  • Writer: Dave Shellnutt
    Dave Shellnutt
  • Oct 29
  • 7 min read
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The other morning, I took our kiddo to daycare for the first time on our fab new Bullitt e-assist cargo bike (thanks Pedaal). The firm bought it for event purposes a while ago, but it was in with our friends at Velo Colour getting some Biking Lawyer branding painted on it (thanks pals!).


But, waiting for the paint to dry wasn't the only reason I hadn’t taken my kid out on the bike before this trip. Another reason is concern that the current state of the law does not allow children as passengers on e-bikes/e-cargo bikes.


A fantastic Toronto Star article about a dad in Kingston pulled over on his e-cargo bike plays on a loop in my head (Feb 2025):


Last November [2024], Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives amended a law regulating electric bikes and replaced it with one that bans anyone under 16 from riding an e-bike — even as a passenger.


The ban has actually been in effect since 2006, according to the Ministry of Transportation, when e-bikes were regulated in the same way as scooters. In 2021, the Ford government brought in legislation that created a new category for e-bikes that would allow underage passengers. But the regulations were never proclaimed into law, and the Safer Roads and Communities Act, which received royal assent in November, overrules the previous law and maintains the ban.


But as the author notes, shops continue to sell them, parents continue to buy them, and the Province’s websites (about e-bikes and e-cargo bike pilot) are confusing and mute on the issue.


The Ontario e-bike website says you must be 16 to ride an e-bike, which could be inferred that you cannot ride ON an e-bike if you are under 16 (riding on we infer to mean as a passenger).


The Ontario e-cargo bike pilot website says you need to be 16 to drive a cargo e-bike and allows passenger. While it may be possible to infer based on this website that you could have a younger passenger. The same Ontario e-cargo pilot Regulation permits passengers but does not mention age:


8. (1) No person under the age of 16 years shall operate a cargo power-assisted bicycle.

(2) No person operating a cargo power-assisted bicycle shall carry any other person thereon unless the bicycle was manufactured to carry passengers.


However, the Highway Traffic Act (which supersedes the above websites in terms of legality) does reference age in relation to a power or motor assisted bicycle passengers:


38(1)(2) No person who is the owner or is in possession or control of a motor assisted bicycle shall permit a person who is under the age of 16 years to ride on, drive or operate the motor assisted bicycle on a highway.


From our perspective, e-bikes and e-cargo bikes are for sure power-assisted bicycles, maybe sometimes motor assisted bicycles. Therefore s. 38 applies.


Now this section is meant to be repealed and replaced by changes to the Moving Ontarians More Safely Act. However, the MOMs Act changes have been assented to but are not law as yet. When they do come into force (or if I guess), the language “ride on” has been omitted and does not apply to the age requirement for power-assisted bicycles (but does for motor-assisted bicycles).


Minimum age to drive power-assisted bicycle

38 (1) No person under the age of 14 years shall operate a power-assisted bicycle described in clause (a) of the definition of “power-assisted bicycle” on a highway.

Same

(2) No person who is the owner or is in possession or control of a power-assisted bicycle referred to in subsection (1) shall permit a person who is under the age of 14 years to operate the power-assisted bicycle on a highway.


This not yet in effect change likely means in the future power-assisted bicycles can have passengers of any age while motor assisted bicycles can only have passengers 16 years or older.


[Stuckless Update]: Our friend Jamie added an update here: The e-bike section of the MOMS Act has been officially abandoned and is never expected to come into effect. It's all being replaced by Bill 197, introduced this time last year, which repeals the definition of e-bikes from the HTA, opting instead to define e-bikes in categories through regulations. The regulations have not yet been issued.


Since Bill 197 isn't law yet either, we're still in the situation noted above with no provision for passengers under the age of 16.


Sadly and definitely not at all in the interests of our collective goals in fighting climate change, congestion, cost of living/inflation, etc., our read on the state of the law is that passengers on e-cargo bikes may not be permitted if they are under 16.


That means no kids. That means I can’t take my kid to day care on the Bullitt.


ree


This is definitely a disservice to Ontarians trying to find affordable, efficient and green ways to get their kids around (not to mention the myriad of other excellent uses for e-cargo bikes). It is also clear as mud and definitely represents a failure in messaging from the Province/Ministry of Transportation.




What are the implications of this?


Enforcement – Toronto Police (unlike the military police out in Kingston) said in the Feb. 10, 2025, Toronto Star article that:


Toronto police could not say if any tickets have been issued. Spokesperson Laura Brabant said she is not aware of any plans for an enforcement campaign.


Albeit that was before this fall’s crackdown on cyclist, e-scooter and e-bike riders across Toronto.


As TPS isn’t accountable to anyone, they may unilaterally decide to ticket e-cargo bike riders carrying kids. Thankfully, we have not heard of this yet. Though, when that Biking Lawyer LLP sign flashes by a TPS cruiser, they may decide it’s ticketing time 😉 


Insurance, Liability and Compensation Questions Remain


Another implication of this is what happens if there is a crash and my kid is injured. Would I be liable in some way for having them on the e-cargo bike despite the prohibition? Would that effect their entitlement to auto insurance benefits and compensation should they be injured in a collision with a motor vehicle?


That last point seems untenable from our perspective, but would I really want to roll those dice and get into a litigation dispute with well resourced insurance defence lawyers?


For me, I think the decision is to ride the Bullitt with the kiddo BUT power off the battery or remove it entirely while she’s in there.  


We feel like the bearers of bad news here, but also want our community to be well informed.


It’s probably time to start writing to your MPPs and Councillors to demand changes we already have, become law and that parents aren’t penalized for legitimate transportation choices.

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Closing notes and FYIs:

Remember the HTA defines Motor Assisted Bicycles as motor vehicles but not Power-Assisted Bicycles.


The practical differences:

“motor assisted bicycle” means a bicycle,

(a)  that is fitted with pedals that are operable at all times to propel the bicycle,

(b)  that weighs not more than fifty-five kilograms,

(c)  that has no hand or foot operated clutch or gearbox driven by the motor and transferring power to the driven wheel,

(d)  that has an attached motor driven by electricity or having a piston displacement of not more than fifty cubic centimetres, and

(e)  that does not have sufficient power to enable the bicycle to attain a speed greater than 50 kilometres per hour on level ground within a distance of 2 kilometres from a standing start; (“cyclomoteur”)

“power-assisted bicycle” is defined by a repealed section of the Motor Vehicle Safety Regulations (make it make sense):

·        (a) has steering handlebars and is equipped with pedals,

·        (b) is designed to travel on not more than three wheels in contact with the ground,

·        (c) is capable of being propelled by muscular power,

·        (d) has one or more electric motors that have, singly or in combination, the following characteristics:

o   (i) it has a total continuous power output rating, measured at the shaft of each motor, of 500 W or less,

o   (ii) if it is engaged by the use of muscular power, power assistance immediately ceases when the muscular power ceases,

o   (iii) if it is engaged by the use of an accelerator controller, power assistance immediately ceases when the brakes are applied, and

o   (iv) it is incapable of providing further assistance when the bicycle attains a speed of 32 km/h on level ground,

·        (e) bears a label that is permanently affixed by the manufacturer and appears in a conspicuous location stating, in both official languages, that the vehicle is a power-assisted bicycle as defined in this subsection, and

·        (f) has one of the following safety features,

o   (i) an enabling mechanism to turn the electric motor on and off that is separate from the accelerator controller and fitted in such a manner that it is operable by the driver, or

o   (ii) a mechanism that prevents the motor from being engaged before the bicycle attains a speed of 3 km/h; (bicyclette assistée)

The City of Toronto seems to acknowledge and not mention any illegality around transporting people on an e-cargo bike: https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2024/ie/bgrd/backgroundfile-250560.pdf

Cargo bikes are a type of modified bicycle that are intended to carry various types of cargo, including goods and people. While these vehicles are propelled primarily by pedaling (human-generated-power) they also have an integrated electric motor which provides a supplementary ‘boost’ of power.


The case for e-cargo bikes is well known, thanks to our friends at Enviro Centre in Ottawa.


The folks at Pedaal have some thoughts in their great piece too.


See our article in Canadian Cycling Magazine about e-bike laws being out of touch.


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