Jump to content

Getting Legislators to Act


dbfrese

Recommended Posts

Earlier this year I sent an email to a state legislator, asking him to look into updating the  "Electric personal assistive mobility device" part of the transportation law that allowed Segways to operate anywhere pedestrians go by allowing EUCs. The Arizona law unfortuitously defined them as "two nontandem wheeled" devices. I think my email was ill-timed, since it was right before the legislative session. I'm trying again, and sent the following email to my state senator and two representatives in our legislature:

I have been riding a new form of self balancing vehicle around North Scottsdale for seven months now, but the vehicle's status is not recognized in the legal definition of "Electric personal assistive mobility device" in A.R.S. 28-101 (22). The device, a Ninebot One, manufactured by the owners of Segway, fits ALL of the criteria for an "Electric personal assistive mobility device," except it has one wheel instead of two.

It is designed to transport one person, goes slower than 15 MPH, it is electrically propelled, but it has one wheel.

The device is rapidly gaining in popularity, and soon there will be hundreds on the roads or sidewalks, with no guidance for law enforcement. Please have the Legislative Council look into updating the law, perhaps simply by removing the the word "two" from the definition at  A.R.S. 28-101 (22). Please feel free to call me if you have any questions. 

This time I hope to get an answer and perhaps some action during the next legislative session. Has anyone else made an attempt to contact their legislators to get their state laws updated? I live in Arizona, and our legislature has a web page to help identify your own district's law makers: http://www.azleg.gov/alisStaticPages/HowToContactMember.asp Your state legislature may also have a similar resource, along with an up-to-date version of your states statutes. Feel free to use my sample email to inform your legislators about the need to change the law, if EUCs are not addressed. And -- if you happen to live in Arizona, use the above link to help you contact your Arizona elected officials! 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 51
  • Created
  • Last Reply

All right peeps! Guess what? I got a call today, and next week the state senator I contacted will meet with someone from the department of transportation and myself to discuss getting the law changed! Woo hoo!

If I can get the ball rolling in my state, you can in yours! Contact your lawmakers to get the law changed!

Now, I need your help: If you know of a state that defines  "Electric personal assistive mobility devices" in a way that allows for EUCs, please let me know. I am trying to give them as much information as possible to help out!

Thanks!

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great work! Good luck. California does not describe "Electric personal assistive mobility devices" in that fashion. Instead, a new term of "Electrically motorized board" was created, which distinguishes our devices as different from "motorized skateboards" and essentially allows them to be equivalent to bicycles on public roads, paths and bikeways. I'd prefer a bit broader adoption, where use on sidewalks is permitted (with speed limitations), but I've never had a problem with law enforcement challenging my ability to ride, and always cite VC 21113 to anyone who asks. Few do. Enjoy your ride!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Update:

I met with the state senator, a representative from the Arizona Department of Transportation, and a lawyer from the Arizona Legislative Council a couple days ago. The senator asked me a few questions about EUCs, what the problem and goal was. The ADOT representative said the department had no objections to the change, and then the senator asked the lawyer how the law should be amended. She made her suggestion, then the senator asked her to draft some legislation and prepare it to drop in the hopper!

After the very short meeting, the senator asked me to demonstrate the Ninebot One, which I had brought with me as part of the show & tell. So, I geared up with my safety gear and rode the Ninebot up and down a third floor hallway of the Arizona Senate building. A small crowd gathered, and there was even someone there willing to give it an (assisted) try. I let him hold onto my shoulder as we went down the hallway.

Arizona's legislature (thankfully) is a part-time legislature, (less time to do damage to freedom) but that means we'll have to wait til January before the bill can be introduced to the Arizona Senate. At that time I may be asked to talk to the Senate Transportation Committee. Our representative republic in action!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

39 minutes ago, HunkaHunkaBurningLove said:

So what sort of reaction and comments did you get from the crowd?

They were all the typical questions that you get from people on the street -- "how does it work?," "is it hard to ride?," "how long does it take to learn?," etc. They were all in a good mood and all smiles during the demo. As I left the building, some that had not seen the demo in the hallway followed me downstairs to see me climb on it again and ride out to my car in the parking lot. All in all it was a very positive experience, and I made some allies at the legislature, from elected officials to administrative assistants to the security guards. 

Yesterday I followed up with a "thank you" email to all those I met with. You can't take for granted those who are willing to help.

For anyone interested in changing their state's law to accommodate EUCs, it's worth a try to contact your state legislators. They may not be as friendly and accommodating as mine, but I suspect that in an election year they may be more receptive to hearing your concerns. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 months later...

Update: the bill has been introduced to the Arizona Senate, and assigned to appropriate committees. :thumbup:

Woo hoo! Link to text of bill below:

https://legiscan.com/AZ/text/SB1017/2017 

Fellow Arizona EUCers, please respond below if you are willing to help out (by sending emails, official comments, etc.). I will coordinate any necessary action. 

Thanks!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Good work!  Happy to help as I can.

It will be nice to have clear law defining the legality of EUCs in Arizona.  This will mean EUCs will have all the legal rights of pedestrians ... as long as the wheel is limited to 15 MPH.  There are a lot of multi-use paths around town that currently are off-limits to "motorized vehicles".

Link to comment
Share on other sites

30 minutes ago, Ombre said:

Happy to help as I can.

Excellent! I will let you know if there is anything you can do. This may actually not be that big of a deal. The senator I'm working with says that the legislature is in a "de-regulatory mood" lately, and since the Department of Transportation has no objections, it could be pretty easy, but you never know.. 

Can you PM me your email address or phone number for texting? That way I can get in touch with you faster than through the forum. 

You are certainly welcome to come to the first committee meaning if you want. It's first hearing will be with the Senate Transportation Committee (Senate Meeting Room 1) on Tuesday Jan 17 at 2PM. It's a long drive from Tucson to go to a mostly boring committee meeting, but if you have the time, come on up!

Thanks for the support!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great work. My only concern is the 15 mph limit. Just about all EUCs that are being produced are capable of speeds greater than that (and I'm not talking about Gotway's). I'm sure it won't make a practical difference, but if someone wanted to make a power move they could say current EUCs are illegal.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Marty Backe said:

Great work. My only concern is the 15 mph limit.

Agreed, and I do believe you are right that it won't make a practical difference. Are cops really going to investigate the specs on all the various EUC models?

On the other hand, I think it's better to get EUCs recognized in the law first, then possibly address the speed issue in a future session. An attempt to ask for a 20 MPH limit, for example, (not even close to a Gotway Monster's 31 MPH) and you could very easily jeopardize passage of the bill. Legislators could object to potentially endangering school children on public sidewalks as they make their way to school, or something like that, and I'm not sure if I would have a convincing argument to assuage their doubts.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awesome job dude! I am in Texas and I am about to meet with my state senator Thursday to do exactly what you have done. Texas legislative session happens only once every 2 years so I have to make sure this gets passed now! I've already made my personal recommended changes to Texas' "Electric Personal Assistive Mobility Device" law so hopefully it will be easy to get it passed through. And actually you changing it in Arizona gives more ammo for me to convince the Texas congress to change it as well. What I am aiming in Texas is not only permitting EUC use on sidewalks and trails, but also on the regular streets. Basically I want EUCs to be viewed by Texas law as the same as a bicycle.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, dbfrese said:

Agreed, and I do believe you are right that it won't make a practical difference. Are cops really going to investigate the specs on all the various EUC models?

On the other hand, I think it's better to get EUCs recognized in the law first, then possibly address the speed issue in a future session. An attempt to ask for a 20 MPH limit, for example, (not even close to a Gotway Monster's 31 MPH) and you could very easily jeopardize passage of the bill. Legislators could object to potentially endangering school children on public sidewalks as they make their way to school, or something like that, and I'm not sure if I would have a convincing argument to assuage their doubts.

Agreed. Somehow California allows EUC's, electric skateboards, bicycles, etc. to travel at 20 mph. Whew!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

32 minutes ago, Michael Vu said:

<snip>

Basically I want EUCs to be viewed by Texas law as the same as a bicycle.

Take a look at the California law. It allows EUCs wherever bicycles are allowed unless expressly forbidden (e.g. Segways or any electric vehicles are not allowed here).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

13 hours ago, Michael Vu said:

What I am aiming in Texas is not only permitting EUC use on sidewalks and trails, but also on the regular streets. Basically I want EUCs to be viewed by Texas law as the same as a bicycle.

Sounds good, just be careful about wording there.  In AZ we have "multi-use trails" where "anything without a motor" is allowed.  That could, depending on wording, exclude EUCs.

But by defining EUCs in AZ as "Electric personal assistive mobility devices" we leveraged the prior work done for Segways and essentially made them equivalent to pedestrians, which means we have access to all trails, sidewalks, ramps, etc., including the multi-use trails.

The compromise of that is that EUCs aren't "vehicles" in AZ and therefore have limited access to roadways.  You might be forced to choose which you value more in Texas: roads or trails.  Personally I prefer having legal access to the multi-use trails over access to roads, but that's due to the nature of the roads here.  Very few streets here are preferable to sidewalks and trails for EUC use.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, Ombre said:

Sounds good, just be careful about wording there.  In AZ we have "multi-use trails" where "anything without a motor" is allowed.  That could, depending on wording, exclude EUCs.

But by defining EUCs in AZ as "Electric personal assistive mobility devices" we leveraged the prior work done for Segways and essentially made them equivalent to pedestrians, which means we have access to all trails, sidewalks, ramps, etc., including the multi-use trails.

The compromise of that is that EUCs aren't "vehicles" in AZ and therefore have limited access to roadways.  You might be forced to choose which you value more in Texas: roads or trails.  Personally I prefer having legal access to the multi-use trails over access to roads, but that's due to the nature of the roads here.  Very few streets here are preferable to sidewalks and trails for EUC use.

Yep I understand all of this from being stopped on trails and on the road. But I'm really trying to be ambitious by having my cake and eating it too by trying to get EUCs allowed on both trails and the road for the simple fact that bicycles are allowed to do that now. We also have the "No Motor Vehicles" on trails, but EUCs won't fall under "motor vehicle" once the definition of an EPAMD is changed. Basically exactly what was accomplished in Arizona.

The biggest thing is permitting EUC use on roadways which is why I simply want to say to lawmakers and police to view EUCs as a bicycle. I have modified the existing Texas code to try to explicitly state this:

SUBCHAPTER C. ELECTRIC PERSONAL ASSISTIVE MOBILITY DEVICES
Sec. 551.201.  DEFINITION.  In this subchapter, "electric personal assistive mobility device" means a two non-tandem wheeled device designed for transporting one person that is:

(1)  self-balancing;  and
(2)  propelled by an electric propulsion system with an average power of 750 watts or one horsepower.
(3)  less than 100 pounds
(4)  less than 3 feet wide

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 1318, Sec. 5, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sec. 551.202.  OPERATION ON ROADWAY.  (a)  A person may operate an electric personal assistive mobility device on a residential street, roadway, or public highway with a speed limit of

30 miles per hour or less only:

   (1)  while making a direct crossing of a highway in a marked or unmarked crosswalk;

    (2)  where no sidewalk is available;  or

    (3)  when so directed by a traffic control device or by a law enforcement officer.

(b)  A person may operate an electric personal assistive mobility device on a path set aside for the exclusive operation of bicycles.

(c)  Any person operating an electric personal assistive mobility device on a residential street, roadway, or public highway shall ride as close as practicable to the right-hand edge.

(d)  Except as otherwise provided by this section, provisions of this title applicable to the operation of bicycles apply to the operation of electric personal assistive mobility devices.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 1318, Sec. 5, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sec. 551.203.  SIDEWALKS.  A person may operate an electric personal assistive mobility device on a sidewalk.

 

 

I ride with bicycle groups all of the time to really show off to everybody that EUCs should be looked at as no different from a bicycle. Because its one thing to be stopped by police saying you cannot ride here when you are by yourself, but its a totally different dynamic if you're riding with other bicyclist and doing everything that they are doing.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Ombre said:

Sounds good, just be careful about wording there.  In AZ we have "multi-use trails" where "anything without a motor" is allowed.  That could, depending on wording, exclude EUCs.

But by defining EUCs in AZ as "Electric personal assistive mobility devices" we leveraged the prior work done for Segways and essentially made them equivalent to pedestrians, which means we have access to all trails, sidewalks, ramps, etc., including the multi-use trails.

The compromise of that is that EUCs aren't "vehicles" in AZ and therefore have limited access to roadways.  You might be forced to choose which you value more in Texas: roads or trails.  Personally I prefer having legal access to the multi-use trails over access to roads, but that's due to the nature of the roads here.  Very few streets here are preferable to sidewalks and trails for EUC use.

Well stated. It seems like there are always compromises between the ideal and the possible when making or amending laws. For Texas the situation is likely different and will require a different solution. That's what so great about different states and different laws -- we can see what works, what works better and what doesn't work at all once implemented!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

BTW -- yesterday at the legislature I was also able to meet one of the prime sponsors of the original Segway (EPAMD) bill that passed in 2002 in Arizona. In fact, he attended the hearing and watched my testimony and demonstration of of my Ninebot around the hearing room, just because he was intersted in seeing the new device.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 1/18/2017 at 5:49 PM, dbfrese said:

BTW -- yesterday at the legislature I was also able to meet one of the prime sponsors of the original Segway (EPAMD) bill that passed in 2002 in Arizona. In fact, he attended the hearing and watched my testimony and demonstration of of my Ninebot around the hearing room, just because he was intersted in seeing the new device.

Awesome! Just saw the video of you testifying. Too bad the camera didn't catch you actually riding around.

I talked to my senator last week and gave him a demo. He was all on board too. So the next step for me is to work with his people to draft up the changes and then go up to the capital sometime to testify.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, Michael Vu said:

Just saw the video of you testifying.

It really is kind of awkward with the protocol in testifying to a committee and answering questions, with the formal, "Mr. Chairman, members of the committee" stuff. I know I stumbled through a few things, including getting the bill number wrong! But they are all really nice people, and pretty forgiving.

I do have another piece of news. There were no objections to Arizona SB1017 being placed on the "Consent Calendar" which means that the bill gets to skip the "Committee of the Whole" (COW), where if there were objections, it would be debated by members on the floor. Instead, it will be given its "third read" and final vote in the Arizona Senate this afternoon (January 26, 2017) at 1:30PM (or thereabouts). :clap3:

I will be watching the vote on the legislature's live stream. (http://azleg.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?publish_id=3

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Excellent work. Thanks for representing all of us. 

BTW, a video of you riding an EUC in a hearing room of the state capitol would have been the coolest thing I've ever seen on this forum.  They never catch the best stuff on camera...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Ombre said:

Excellent work. Thanks for representing all of us. 

BTW, a video of you riding an EUC in a hearing room of the state capitol would have been the coolest thing I've ever seen on this forum.  They never catch the best stuff on camera...

Actually, there is a video of him demonstrating his Ninebot One to the members of the committee.  Great job in presenting the pro's of riding an EUC.  I also live in AZ and would love to know that my EUC is legal to ride on the sidewalks.  Below is the link to the video and skip to 30:29 for the "good stuff".

http://azleg.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=13&clip_id=18335&meta_id=379732

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...