Nebraska Rules for E-Bikes, Mopeds and Scooters

Before you buy: the three classes

LB138 swapped Nebraska's old single definition for three classes. All three have two, three or four wheels, a seat, pedals that fully work and an electric motor of 750 watts or less producing no more than 1 brake horsepower. Under section 60-618.03, falling into one of the three classes is what makes something an electric bicycle.

What separates them is how the motor helps and when it stops. Class I helps only while you pedal and quits at 20 mph. Class II can move the bike with or without pedaling, again only to 20 mph. Class III helps only while you pedal but keeps going to 28 mph, as Section 60-614.04 spells out.

• Class I: pedal assist, cuts out at 20 mph
• Class II: throttle or pedal assist, cuts out at 20 mph
• Class III: pedal assist only, cuts out at 28 mph

Why there are no plates or license

Two definitions do the work: section 60-611 says a bicycle includes an e-bike, and section 60-640 excludes e-bikes from motor driven cycles. Together they keep a legal e-bike outside motorcycle and moped rules: no Class M, no plate, no proof of insurance.

Section 60-6,314 gives anyone pedaling on a public road the same rights and responsibilities as a motorist, except where bicycle specific rules say otherwise. Bicycle equipment rules come along too: a lamp in front seen from 500 feet at night, an approved rear red reflector, and brakes good enough to stop inside 25 feet from 10 mph.

On the ride: where an e-bike goes

Section 60-6,317 tells a rider moving slower than traffic to keep as close to the right curb or edge as is practical, except when passing, turning left, avoiding hazards, in lanes too narrow to share, or when lawfully riding a state highway shoulder. On a one-way road with two or more lanes and a limit of 35 mph or less, riding near the left edge is allowed. On highways, ride single file unless you are on a bike path.

On sidewalks and in crosswalks, a rider has a pedestrian's rights and duties but must yield to people on foot. Section 60-6,317 also lets cities add bicycle rules by ordinance, and LB138 also amended section 60-678 so that state agencies and local governments can permit, limit or forbid e-bikes on property they manage, and breaking a posted rule there is a Class III misdemeanor.

For your teen: ages and helmets

Nebraska law has no youngest age for any class and no helmet rule for bicycles. Section 60-6,279, the helmet law, reaches only mopeds, motorcycles and open autocycles. That leaves room for local rules: a school, a city, a park district or a rental company may require helmets or set ages, so ask before the first ride to class or along a city path.

Moving up to a moped changes everything. On a moped, both rider and passenger wear a helmet built to the federal motorcycle standard (a few riders 21 and over can qualify for exemptions), and all moped riders need eyes covered by goggles, a visor or a windshield. A sensible family rule for an e-bike is simply a helmet every ride.

If it is stronger: mopeds and motor driven cycles

A moped, per section 60-637, has pedals that work, shifts automatically, and runs on an engine of 50 cc or smaller with 2 brake horsepower at most and a 30 mph top speed. To ride one on public roads you must hold a valid operator's license (section 60-6,310); a Class O qualifies, per the DMV manual. Mopeds need no title or registration and fall outside the financial responsibility act, thanks to section 60-6,309.

A motorized bike that fits no e-bike class, for example one with a motor over 750 watts, becomes a motor driven cycle under section 60-640, the same bucket that holds motor scooters up to 5 brake horsepower. Plan on licensing and plates much like a motorcycle, and check with the DMV first.

The scooter gap

Nebraska law never defines a stand up electric scooter. The closest the code comes is the phrase motor scooter, tucked into the motor driven cycle definition, and no DMV page we checked explains where a small electric kick scooter fits. Section 60-618.02 deals only with self balancing personal assistive mobility devices.

Omaha, for its part, has dealt with rental scooter fleets by council vote and operator agreements rather than through any state statute. We could not verify the ordinance wording in force today, so look at city code, the app's rules and street signs, and check with police on sidewalk riding.

Afterward: what changed, and what might

LB138 was a wide 2023 motor vehicle bill that included e-bikes. Most of it, the classes included, took effect three calendar months after the 2023 session ended. The older law knew only one kind of e-bike, with two or three wheels, at most 750 watts and a 20 mph design speed; a pedal assist bike capable of 28 mph used to be a motor driven cycle.

Several ideas other states use are still missing here: labels showing the class, a minimum age for Class III, and trail access rules by class. Bills could appear in a future session, so check the Legislature's statute pages again before a purchase.