Glen Ellyn and Lombard families with teen e-bike riders face new rules starting Jan. 1, 2027, when a statewide law replaces the local ordinances both villages adopted to regulate the devices.

Gov. JB Pritzker signed Senate Bill 3484 on Aug. 27, creating uniform regulations for e-bikes, e-scooters, e-motos, electric unicycles and electric skateboards across Illinois, Capitol News Illinois reported. The Senate had approved it 54-0 on June 1 with bipartisan support.

Under the new law, riders of Class 1 and Class 2 e-bikes, which are pedal-assist or throttle-powered and top out at 20 mph, must be at least 15. There was previously no state age requirement for those devices. Class 3 e-bike riders, on devices reaching up to 28 mph, must be at least 16.

High-speed devices capable of exceeding 28 mph carry the strictest requirements. Riders must be at least 16 and hold a valid driver's license. Those devices also require a title, registration and insurance.

The law bans all low-speed e-bikes from sidewalks statewide. Violations can result in fines and police confiscation of the device.

Both Glen Ellyn and Lombard had already passed their own e-bike ordinances before the state acted, according to CBS Chicago. The new law supersedes that local patchwork, though municipalities can still adopt additional rules.

Lombard's Public Safety and Transportation Committee received an e-bike legislation update at its May 6 meeting, according to village records, signaling the village was tracking the pending state bill.

Local enforcement data shows the problem is not abstract. Lombard police received 89 911 calls related to e-bikes and similar devices in the month starting April 1, NBC Chicago reported in May. Officers stopped 37 riders, wrote tickets and impounded seven devices.

"Behaviors are not getting better. They're getting worse," Lombard Police Chief Joe Grage told NBC Chicago in May, before the bill was signed. Grage said parents can be cited in lieu of, or in addition to, their child for e-bike violations, and that this has happened "a couple times."

In Glen Ellyn, police cited three adults during the week of May 31 through June 6 for violations related to e-bikes and personal mobility devices, including "Violation of Duty of Parent or Guardian," according to a Glen Ellyn Police Department news report.

The safety concerns extend well beyond DuPage County. At Northwestern Medicine McHenry Hospital, trauma program coordinator Karen Battaglia tracked 41 patients treated for serious e-bike and e-scooter injuries between September 2025 and August 2026. Of those, 21 were 15 or younger, and 90% were not wearing helmets, Shaw Local reported.

Nationally, e-bike-related emergency room visits among children and adolescents younger than 18 increased 7.5-fold between 2023 and May 2026, according to data from Truveta, a hospital data company. More than a third of those patients had head or neck injuries.

Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, whose office initiated the legislation, said in an Aug. 27 statement that the law brings accountability and safety standards to Illinois roads. The Illinois Municipal League, which typically resists state preemption of local authority, backed the bill.

E-bikes and e-motos purchased before Jan. 1, 2027, are exempt from the title requirement but must still be registered with the state. The Secretary of State's office plans a public awareness campaign and will update driver education materials before the law takes effect.