The A-Z of E-Bikes

Where electricity-powered bicycles can and cannot go

BY ERIN SPILLANE

If you are one of the growing number of electronic bike users locally, where can you take your e-bike, besides roadways? Read on to learn more about the local rules regarding the practical, climate-friendly e-bikes that continue to grow in popularity by leaps and bounds.

TOWN OF TELLURIDE

In Telluride, conservation easements prohibit e-bikes on the Valley Floor or in Bear Creek Preserve. E-bikes are also prohibited on the River Trail from Boomerang Road to the east side of the Gold Run housing development. On Town Park pathways, “e-bikes are discouraged due to their higher speeds and associated safety concerns on these multi-use and highly used pathways,” according to Stephanie Jaquet, the Town’s parks and recreation director. E-bikes are permitted on the paved bike path that runs alongside the Highway 145 spur, and, like bikes and e-scooters, are not allowed on sidewalks, and are subject to the same rules as any other road user.

TOWN OF MOUNTAIN VILLAGE

In Mountain Village, everywhere human-powered bikes are permitted to go, e-bikes can go too. “We treat them the same as bikes, so they can go on any of our trails where regular bikes are allowed,” said Jim Loebe, the Town of Mountain Village’s transit director.

Loebe added that the Town sees e-bikes as “the wave of the future and we want to accommodate them as much as possible. We are looking to build out charging infrastructure in key locations and provide more parking for bikes and e-bikes as part of our policy of encouraging active transit.”

He noted that there are a few places in Mountain Village where bikes, and therefore e-bikes, are not allowed, including the dismount area that encompasses the plazas and walkways in the Village Center, and the Ridge Trail, which is pedestrian only.

Loebe, who heads the team that oversees the Gondola, pointed to the transit system as one place where e-bikes are treated differently, largely because of their weight. “E-bikes are heavy so they can’t go on the door racks, they need to use the rear rack of the cabin instead,” he said, adding that in some cases the weight of the e-bike is such that it has to go in the cabin itself, in which case it’s one e-bike per cabin.

Added Loebe, “If someone wants to take an e-bike on the Gondola, they need to load it themselves.”

SAN MIGUEL COUNTY

Most of the County’s trails were created by conservation easements that don’t allow for motorized use, which means that on many of the County’s popular trails in the east end, such as the Idarado Legacy Trail, Remine Creek trail, Aldasoro trail, Keystone Gorge Loop trail, Coal Chutes Loop and the Galloping Goose trail, e-bikes are prohibited.

They are permitted on Tomboy and Bridal Veil (K69) roads, according to Director of Parks and Open Space Janet Kask, who oversees the County’s Open Space Commission. Kask also explained that in 2020, the Board of County Commissioners directed the OSC to identify County trails where e-bikes might be appropriate.

After studying the issue, Kask said, the group recommended that class 1 e-bikes be permitted on the County’s Whiskey Charlie 62 Trail, a 3.5-mile trail that follows the Rio Grande Southern Railroad along Highway 62, and the M59 River Trail, a 4.3-mile dirt road accessible just east of Sawpit behind the state road shop near Deep Creek. (By far the most prevalent e-bike sold in the United States according to Bicycling Magazine, class 1 e-bikes are pedal-assisted, have no throttle and a maximum assisted speed of 20 mph.)

“The OSC felt there wasn’t much difference between a mountain bike and a class 1 e-bike,” Kask noted of the decision, which also recommended that class 2 and 3 e-bikes continue to be limited to “paved/hard surfaces and roadways.”

TELLURIDE SKI RESORT

The ski resort also makes the distinction between class 1 e-bikes and the heavier, more powerful classes 2 and 3, by permitting e-bikes on biking trails that are within the resort’s permit area, but limiting that access to class 1 e-bikes. The e-bike-friendly policy, which was detailed in a June 2022 press release, excludes Boomerang and the Wasatch Connection, both of which lead directly to U.S. Forest Service land, where e-bikes are not permitted.

The resort allows e-bikes to be loaded on Lift 4, and exit the San Sophia mid-station on the Gondola. In the release announcing the policy, the resort pointed out that permitting the use of e-bikes was partly an inclusion issue, with the resort’s vice president of sales and marketing, Patrick Latcham, noting that “e-bikes will provide the opportunity for some of our older or disabled guests to get on the mountain.” A ski resort trail where bikes and e-bikes are not permitted is Telluride Trail.

FEDERALLY MANAGED LANDS

Much of the land surrounding the towns of Telluride and Mountain Village, as well as the Telluride Ski Resort, is managed by the U.S. Forest Service. According to USFS District Ranger Megan Eno, class 1, 2 and 3 e-bikes are permitted on motorized trails and roads on National Forest system lands. Of non-motorized trails, Eno said in an email, “Before a decision to expand the use of e-bikes on currently designated non-motorized trails, the Forest Service must first conduct the appropriate environmental analysis and public engagement (NEPA), just like any other project that alters the use of National Forest system lands.” For now, that means that, locally, e-bikes are prohibited on a number of popular non-motorized trails, including Jud Wiebe, Mill Creek, Deep Creek, Wasatch Trail, Liberty Bell, Eider Creek and trails in the Lizard Head Wilderness.

The Telluride Tourism Board’s summer trail maps also indicates where e-bikes are permitted. Maps are available in locally distributed issues of the Guide, at the Visitors Center at 236 W. Colorado Ave., in lodging properties and from outfitters.