Wyoming E-Bike and Electric Scooter Rules, Explained

Before you buy: which class is this bike?

Wyoming's definition has four ingredients: pedals that actually work, a seat or saddle, two or three wheels (a tricycle qualifies), and an electric motor rated below 750 watts. From there the classes split by how the motor helps and when it quits.

You will find the same definition in the traffic code at W.S. 31-5-102(a)(lxviii). Wyoming also wrote e-bikes out of its definitions of moped, motorcycle, motor-driven cycle and motor vehicle. The upshot: if a bike fits one of the three classes, the law sees a bicycle.

• Class 1: the motor helps only when you pedal, and help ends at 20 mph
• Class 2: a throttle can move the bike with no pedaling, and help ends at 20 mph
• Class 3: the motor helps only when you pedal, and help ends at 28 mph

Paperwork and equipment

W.S. 31-5-707(a) gives e-bike riders the same rights and duties as other drivers under W.S. 31-5-702, then lists what does not apply to them: the Title 31 chapters on driver's licenses, registration, certificates of title, financial responsibility and off-road recreational vehicles. In plain terms, a 14 year old needs neither a permit nor a license to ride one.

The bike itself must meet the federal bicycle standard, 16 CFR 1512. Its motor has to cut out the moment the rider stops pedaling, squeezes the brake or switches it off. Tinkering with top speed or with how the motor engages is against the law unless the label is replaced to reflect the bike's new class.

Riding after sunset? Wyoming's bicycle lighting rules kick in. You need a white lamp up front that can be seen 500 feet away, a red reflector at the back that shows up from 600 feet, and brakes good enough to stop within 25 feet when you are going 10 mph.

Young riders: ages, helmets and a parent's duty

No Wyoming statute sets a minimum age for any class, even Class 3, and none requires an e-bike rider of any age to wear a helmet. The one state helmet law, W.S. 31-5-115, is about minors riding motorcycles, and it specifically does not reach mopeds.

So the decision lands with you and your town. There is one legal hook for parents: W.S. 31-5-701(b) forbids a parent or guardian to authorize, or knowingly permit, a child's violation of the bicycle rules. If your child rides an e-bike on public roads, you share responsibility for how they do it.

Here is where that leaves a family. On paper, a 12 year old may ride a Class 3 that assists to 28 mph. Whether that is a good idea is your judgment, and a town ordinance may still say no.

On roads, trails and sidewalks

Street riding follows Article 7's bicycle rules. Stay near the right edge where you practically can. Pass stopped or slower vehicles carefully. Two abreast is the limit except on bike-only paths, and when two of you ride side by side, keep within one lane. At least one hand stays on the bars.

Off the street, W.S. 31-5-707(f) hands control to whoever has jurisdiction: any local authority or state agency may regulate any e-bike class, even on natural surface trails meant for nonmotorized use. Federal land, state parks and city pathways can each go their own way, so check posted signs and the land manager's website first.

Sidewalks trip up a lot of riders. W.S. 31-5-120 forbids driving any vehicle on a sidewalk other than by human power (motorized wheelchairs excepted), apart from crossing at a driveway. Put that next to the e-bike statute and riding under motor power on a sidewalk is out, unless a local ordinance clearly allows it.

What your town can do

Local authorities get broad powers under W.S. 31-5-109. For e-bikes that includes regulating how they are ridden and requiring them to be registered and licensed, with a fee. Some Wyoming towns already register ordinary bicycles this way.

The same statute covers skates, coasters, sleds, motorized skateboards and other toy vehicles. Cheyenne and other cities write their own rules for paths, sidewalks and parks. We were unable to confirm whether Cheyenne currently has an e-bike or scooter ordinance, so call the city or read its code before taking a rental or a quick scooter downtown.

Stand up scooters

Wyoming law has no category made for the stand up electric scooter. What comes closest is the motorized skateboard in W.S. 31-5-102(a)(lxii): a self propelled device with a motor or engine and a deck, on two or more wheels, that is not already a motor vehicle, motorcycle, motor-driven cycle or pedestrian vehicle. The motor vehicle definition leaves motorized skateboards out.

The practical result is no state license, no state registration, no state age limit and no scooter specific state speed cap; local governments decide. The sidewalk rule on powered travel still applies. Sit down scooters with gas engines are another matter. Under the motor-driven cycle definition, a motor scooter with an engine below 150 cc or 5 brake horsepower is a motorcycle, so it needs registration, insurance and a motorcycle endorsement.

When a bike crosses into moped territory

W.S. 31-5-102(a)(xxi) describes a moped as a motor-driven cycle that has foot pedals, at most two brake horsepower and a top speed of 30 mph on the flat. If it runs on fuel, the engine is 50 cc or smaller and needs no clutch or gear changes. The definition carves out electric bicycles.

Mopeds count as motor-driven cycles and therefore as motor vehicles. Expect registration, a title and insurance, plus a driver's license for the rider. An electric bike rated 750 watts or above, or one whose motor pushes it past its class speed, should be handled as a moped or motorcycle; ask WYDOT how to title and register it.