The Borough of Newville has recently been overrun with an abundance of mostly electric powered devices operating on the streets and sidewalks. There have been a few accidents and a large amount of close calls between these devices and motorists. The police department is asking that you become familiar with PA state laws and Newville Borough ordinances regulating their operation in the borough. A fact sheet provided by PennDOT is displayed in this post. 

We will try to summarize the three most frequently encountered devices. (Electric Scooters, Motorized Pedalcycles and E-Bikes) Electric powered scooters can not be ridden anywhere, but on private property. Motorized pedalcycles require the operator to be a minimum of 16 years old and have a valid driver's license. They also require registration and insurance among other items. The most commonly encountered device category is the E-Bike. These devices also require the operator to be a minimum of 16 years old along with a few other requirements. None of these devices are permitted to be ridden on a borough sidewalk. Please reference Ordinance 2008-6 which can be found on newvillepd.com or newvilleborough.com. In addition, please be aware that any device legally permitted to operate on a public roadway must follow all of the rules of the road just like a motor vehicle. (Stop signs, redlights, one-way streets, speed limits etc.)

These aforementioned devices will begin to be addressed over the coming days or weeks. Education will be the goal on the front end, but enforcement will follow. Enforcement could include traffic citations and/or borough ordinance violations.