Windsor councillor questions motorized bike regulations

A motorized bike in Windsor. (Source: AM800 News/Submitted)

The councillor for Ward 3 in Windsor is wondering, what’s the deal with motorized bikes?

Renaldo Agostino says over the last few weeks, he has heard from residents concerned about the use of the vehicle.

“It really came to fruition, I’ve had a lot of residents downtown asking about it but I saw a guy doing it during a wrestling event we had downtown on Saturday just ripping up and down Ouellette Avenue with very little space and a large crowd of people and no regards for his safety or the safety of people around him,” says Agostino.

He says it’s happening all over downtown at all times.

“I’ve got reports of people doing it on the riverfront, on Riverside Drive, at all times in the morning, 2 o’clock in the morning, 3 o’clock in the morning,” he says. “So this is something new that we haven’t seen before so I need some information on how these bikes on licensed and what’s the deal with these things because they’re just like motorcycles.”

Agostino says residents have seen motorized bikes on roads and sidewalks and are concerned with the speed and noise of the bikes.

“There’s got to be something in here to regulate what these bikes can do and where they can operate in, the noise decibels of some of these things in unbelievable,” says Agostino. “So I need to know more information.”

He believes the bikes are going faster than 20 kilometres.

Agostino says he plans to approach city bylaw staff and administration to see what levers the city has in place, to have some sense of control on the motorized bikes.

He also plans to talk to Windsor police and says it could be a future city council issue.