06/25/2026
🚨 OPEN LETTER TO GOVERNOR RON DESANTIS & THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE 🚨
As members of E-Riders Poinciana Florida, we support protecting pedestrians.
However, we also believe CS/SB 382 can be improved to make it clearer, easier to understand, and easier to enforce.
We respectfully ask everyone to read our proposal before commenting.
Please read, share, and tag your Florida legislators.
OPEN LETTER:
A Respectful Proposal to Improve Florida’s CS/SB 382
To:
Governor Ron DeSantis
Members of the Florida Senate
Members of the Florida House of Representatives
Florida Law Enforcement Agencies
Florida’s E-Riders Community
The Citizens of the State of Florida
June 25, 2026
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Dear Governor DeSantis, Members of the Florida Legislature, Fellow E-Riders, and Citizens of Florida:
On behalf of E-Riders Poinciana Florida, we respectfully submit this Open Letter regarding CS/SB 382.
We are simply a group of E-Riders who enjoy riding, spending time with family and friends, and responsibly enjoying electric mobility. We support the safe use of new electric transportation and recreational technology, including electric bicycles, electric scooters, Onewheels, electric skateboards, electric unicycles, drift trikes, and other personal electric vehicles.
Most importantly, we promote safety, respect for pedestrians, responsible riding, rider education, and the protection of everyone who uses Florida’s roads, sidewalks, parks, trails, and shared public spaces.
This letter is not written to oppose public safety.
This letter is written because we believe Florida can make CS/SB 382 clearer, fairer, more practical, and easier to enforce while still protecting pedestrians.
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We Support the Purpose of the Law
We fully support the goal of protecting pedestrians.
Pedestrians deserve to feel safe. Families deserve safe parks. Children deserve safe sidewalks. Senior citizens deserve safe walking paths. Riders also deserve clear rules they can understand and follow.
The goal of CS/SB 382 is important.
Our concern is not the purpose of the law. Our concern is the wording of one section.
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The Section That Should Be Reviewed
The current bill requires an electric bicycle operator to reduce speed to 10 miles per hour whenever a pedestrian is within 50 feet.
On paper, this may sound simple.
In real life, we believe this language can create confusion for riders, pedestrians, and law enforcement.
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Why the 50-Foot Rule Can Be Improved
1. A rider cannot accurately measure 50 feet while riding
A rider must focus on traffic, pedestrians, children, intersections, vehicles, road hazards, animals, weather conditions, and safe control of the bike.
Expecting a rider to also estimate an invisible distance of exactly 50 feet while riding is not practical.
No one rides with a measuring tape.
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2. Pedestrians are constantly moving
A pedestrian may stop, turn, walk toward the rider, walk away, cross the sidewalk, jog, walk a dog, or exit a parked vehicle.
That means the distance changes every second.
The law does not clearly answer:
When exactly must the rider slow to 10 mph?
When exactly can the rider safely accelerate again?
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3. Enforcement may become inconsistent
Without a practical way to measure exactly 50 feet, different officers may interpret the same situation differently.
One officer may believe the rider violated the law.
Another officer may believe the rider complied.
Good laws should be clear enough for citizens to follow and practical enough for officers to enforce consistently.
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4. Not every location has the same risk
A quiet neighborhood sidewalk is not the same as a crowded beach boardwalk.
A wide recreational trail is not the same as a busy downtown sidewalk.
A park path is not the same as a school zone.
The law should focus on actual safety conditions, not only a fixed distance that may be difficult to judge in real time.
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Our Proposal
We respectfully recommend replacing the fixed 50-foot rule with language focused on safe and responsible riding behavior.
Riders should always slow down when approaching pedestrians, yield when necessary, give warning when appropriate, and ride at a speed that matches the real conditions around them.
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Suggested Language for Review
“An operator of an electric bicycle shall operate at a speed that is reasonable and prudent based upon existing conditions, including pedestrian activity, traffic, visibility, roadway or pathway design, weather, and surrounding circumstances. When approaching or passing pedestrians, the operator shall reduce speed to a safe level, yield the right-of-way, provide an audible warning when appropriate, and maintain a safe passing distance. In areas with heavy pedestrian traffic or locations where pedestrian activity creates an increased risk of collision, the maximum operating speed shall be 10 miles per hour.”
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Why This Language Would Improve the Law
This proposal would:
✔ Continue protecting pedestrians.
✔ Remove the need for riders to guess an invisible 50-foot distance.
✔ Encourage riders to slow down whenever conditions require it.
✔ Give law enforcement a practical standard based on actual behavior and conditions.
✔ Reduce confusion for responsible riders trying to obey the law.
✔ Reduce unnecessary disagreements between riders, pedestrians, and officers.
✔ Recognize that sidewalks, trails, parks, boardwalks, and shared paths are not all the same.
✔ Keep the 10 mph limit where it makes the most sense: areas with heavy pedestrian traffic or increased collision risk.
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Education Should Also Be Part of the Solution
Many riders want to follow the law but may not fully understand the rules.
Florida should continue encouraging rider education, pedestrian awareness, safety equipment, responsible riding, and respectful sharing of public spaces.
Groups like E-Riders Poinciana Florida are willing to help promote safe riding and public education within the E-Riders community.
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Our Respectful Request
Governor DeSantis and Members of the Florida Legislature:
We respectfully ask that this portion of CS/SB 382 be reviewed before becoming law, or that future amendments be considered to clarify and improve this section.
We are not asking Florida to weaken pedestrian protections.
We are asking Florida to strengthen the law by making it clearer, more practical, easier to understand, and easier to enforce.
Florida can lead the nation with micromobility laws that balance:
Public safety
Personal responsibility
Common sense
Clear enforcement
Respect for pedestrians
Respect for responsible riders
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To Florida’s E-Riders Community
This letter is not meant to divide anyone.
It is meant to start a respectful conversation.
If you believe CS/SB 382 can be improved while still protecting pedestrians, we respectfully ask you to read, share, and discuss this proposal respectfully.
Together, we can help Florida create a law that protects pedestrians while giving riders and law enforcement clear, fair, and practical guidance.
Florida deserves a law that works for everyone.
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Respectfully Submitted,
E-Riders Poinciana Florida
“Never Grow Up”
