[anjan_c2007]

It's always queer news, when the government and especially law enforcement agencies/ departments resort to application of fossilised or archaic laws. Such laws may have been enacted more than a century ago but these take rebirth to enforce their provisions now to rein in erring members of the public. This because present laws are apparently bereft of such provisions and hence the discovery of new life in the fossilised skeletons in a cupboard by the government makes the whole story spicy.

One such old law that very few know about has come in handy for the Kolkata Police (KP) to challan lighter e-bikes with a 250 W or lighter motors that cannot exceed speeds of 25 kmph, that are not usually registered by the RTO's and cannot fall under the ambit of the Motor Vehicles Act or Central Motor Vehicles Rules.

The laws are Calcutta Police Act of and Calcutta Suburban Police Act, both from 1866. These laws have provisions to book erring, slow moving vehicles like cycles, rickshaws, carts and horse drawn carriages and are conveniently being used by the police there against e-bikes now.

More on this link :-

https://m.timesofindia.com/city/kolk...w/89489364.cms

[RedTerrano]

I have no love lost for the WB cops but from the article, I did not get the feeling that they are using the law against eBikes for being eBikes (non registered at that)

One is for driving on the wrong side and other other is for parking in such a was so as to cause hinderance. Both will be punished for non eBikes as well

[Dry Ice]

Thanks for sharing! This snippet from the link sums up the situation quite well.



When the powered scooters/scootys which do need a license, insurance, fall under MV act do not adhere to laws, what hope is there from vehicles which are 'exempt'?

Quite clever of them actually to find and use something already in the law books before the legislators wake up and give them some power to tackle this nuisance.

[condor]

Low power EV's - esp bikes are often allowed to be used without licence. This is a big loop hole. Once in traffic, except cycles, a person must be made to have a licence since he is part of the traffic.

[NPV]

Actually this will hopefully open the eyes of cops in other states as well to rein in such errant riders. It's quite a menace now even in Bangalore where the Yulus and other e-scooters are used by underage joyriders, delivery boys, etc and openly flout all traffic norms - riding on footpaths, riding on wrong side of the road, do not stop at red lights to name a few (all this while not wearing a helmet as well).

I always wondered how these are road legal but have different or no laws and rules governing them.

[Sarath_]

The public uses a loophole
Police use a loophole
Everyone is in the same pool, evading but not innovating.

Also, how does this affect bicycles with motorised components or e-bikes as called?

[anjan_c2007]

In fact, the ICE powered TVS Express (35 cc), Luna Wings (35 cc) and the Enfield Mofa (22 cc) (It was not Royal Enfield as the company had dropped Royal for some years since the 1980's) were out of the ambit of the Motor Vehicles Act and the Central Motor Vehicles Rules due to their tiny engine sizes, but cops perhaps sensed no nuisance value in these frail mopeds of the late 1980's and 1990's. Whereas, they may be feeling the heat of traffic law violations through these new age e-bikes and hence perhaps the brainstorming session/s and the unearthing of these long forgotten and buried laws.

[GTO]

Mod Note: Thread moved to the 2-wheeler forum. Thanks for sharing!

[ebonho]

An excellent move.

Nothing pisses off a genuine hardworking cyclist more than an e bike designed to look like a cycle, getting all the benefits of a cycle (lack of undue penal attention from cops), yet without the hard yards needed to move to earn that.

A great share. Let me see if I can sensitize Poona cops to the same by sitting on a few select shoulders.

Cheers, Doc

[th2]

My opinion is that the 250W limit should be raised to 1000W. And give the non-registration exemption only to motor assisted bicycles. That is, it should be a regular pedal powered motorcycle with a hub motor or some other battery assist. That may really help in keeping overall costs low and also popularising more e-cycle usage.

250W is really too low.

[alpha1]

Anything that is on the road requires driving license and insurance. There cannot be any contest on this.

A small vehicle can also cause a large accident (say the electric cycle guy is riding on the wrong side and causes a truck-walla to crash into another vehicle/person).

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by alpha1

Anything that is on the road requires driving license and insurance.

What about pedestrians then?

Cheers, Doc

[alpha1]

Originally Posted by ebonho

What about pedestrians then?

Cheers, Doc

I know where you leading me to ... but I wont bite the bait.
Pedestrian is not supposed to be on the road - except at zebra crossing.
Pedestrian's place is pavement/sidewalk.

[aim120]

Originally Posted by th2

My opinion is that the 250W limit should be raised to 1000W.

250W is really too low.

When you put a speed limit of 25km/hr yet keep on increasing the power of the motor to say 1000w or more. The acceleration will be much faster, even though it may only hit 25km/hr. When a kid or a novice starts driving these and if a pedestrian get hit from this, it's going to hurt quite a lot.

Delivery vehicles may have a small motor but when they carry the delivery goods plus the weight of the battery. The vehicle is going to be quite heavy and more mass means the inertia is higher. So if one gets hit by them it can hurt quite a lot or even be lethal when they hit a kid or a small animal.

Finally just because they don't require a licence or registration to drive, doesn't mean one can break all the traffic rules or drive like a maniac.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by alpha1

I know where you leading me to ... but I wont bite the bait.
Pedestrian is not supposed to be on the road - except at zebra crossing.
Pedestrian's place is pavement/sidewalk.

Are we having a theoretical discussion here?

What about bicycles then? Road or sidewalk?

Cheers, Doc