E BIKE seized

On Friday 20th February one of the police officers on our patrol teams stopped the rider of this E BIKE after it was seen being ridden in an anti social manner around St Austell. Appearances were deceiving as the electric motor was later found to be illegally altered to increase it's top speed to 35 mph!

The other image displays what makes an E BIKE a legal electronically assisted pedal cycle (EAPC) which means it can be ridden like any other pedal cycle on the road, cycle paths and bridleways. EAPC can only be ridden by people over the age of 14.

If an E BIKE is not an EAPC it will fall under the motorcycle classification. Therefore it must be must be registered, taxed and insured. The rider must have a valid driving licence. They can only be ridden on a road.

The rider had his E BIKE seized and has been prosecuted for a number of offences under the Road Traffic Act.

For our social media critics who may say that we should be out "catching burglars" or similar there has been a number of incidents reported regionally and nationally with pedestrians and riders being seriously injured or killed by E BIKES being ridden carelessly or dangerously.

The results of an E BIKE potentially colliding with a another vehicle or pedestrian at 35 mph can be devastating.