Orlando teen's death underscores concerns about e-bikes, e-scooters

The death of a 13-year-old Lake Nona boy, fatally injured on Mother’s Day while riding an electric scooter to buy flowers for his mom, has cast a pall over the Orange County commission’s scheduled discussion Tuesday about regulating so-called micro-mobility devices.

Commissioners are expected to listen to a staff presentation and suggest new rules and restrictions.

The meeting agenda is thin on details, but the county could build on measures recently adopted by the cities of DeLand in Volusia County and Winter Garden in Orange to rein in the popular, battery-powered machines, e-bikes included, amid complaints and safety worries. But few rules apply to their use in most municipalities currently.

“I’m so sad and angry about this growing dangerous situation,” said District 3 Commissioner Mayra Uribe, also a candidate for county mayor. “While I have found more residents are using e-scooters/e-bikes to get around, we need to look at setting and creating regulations.”

Emergency room doctors here have reported a spike in injuries linked to the devices.

The board also will likely hear from a representative of Orange County schools and the Sheriff’s Office.

Thirteen-year-old Colton Remsburg died Wednesday at Arnold Palmer Hospital, three days after the e-scooter he was riding Sunday was struck by a pickup truck on Moss Park Road, according to a crash summary provided by the Florida Highway Patrol.

The scooter “entered the direct path” of the truck and was not in a marked crosswalk, FHP spokesperson Migdalisis Garcia said in an email. A traffic homicide investigator has been assigned to follow up on the crash. Garcia said Colton was not wearing a helmet.

Friends of the boy’s family started a GoFundMe page on the crowd-funding site that has raised more than $51,000.

“Their son, Colton, is a bright light in the lives of everyone who knows and loves him,” read the original appeal. “Colton is full of energy and kindness, with a passion for sports and fishing that has brought joy to so many. He is also a proud and loving big brother who means the world to his family.”

Winter Garden resident Linda Sibley, an avid runner and bicyclist, collected over 1,000 signatures through an online petition last year to “proactively address this public safety issue BEFORE either a student or anyone on the bike trail/sidewalk is seriously injured.”

She renewed her call for action Friday in a letter to commissioners.

“The heartbreaking and preventable death of a student in Lake Nona - a child riding a micro-mobility vehicle without a helmet - is the nightmare scenario we have all known was entirely foreseeable,” Sibley wrote. “I am writing to you today not just with profound sorrow, but with an urgent demand for accountability and a swift shift in how we approach the pending Orange County ordinance.”

In December, Orange County commissioners took a first look at e-bikes, prodded by a memo from commissioner Nicole Wilson.

“Micro-mobility device use is rapidly increasing in urban, suburban, and tourist areas,” she wrote in her memo asking for board attention. “These devices offer mobility, last-mile connectivity and environmental benefits, but they also create safety, parking, right-of-way, and enforcement challenges.”

Wilson, who represents west Orange, said the machines pose risks that can be minimized with regulations focused on safety.

“Safety is primarily the issue,” she said.

Commissioner Mike Scott, who represents District 6 which includes parts of Pine Hills and Tangelo Park, said at the December discussion that he sees more kids riding motorized bicycles and scooters around the community, often on sidewalks but at times on streets.

“They’ll have their headphones on, be on their phones, or they’ll do both, and then, boom, you get in a car accident,” he said.

Scott said some youths have figured out how to get around manufacturer’s speed safeguards intended to limit speeds to 28 mph.

Modifications enable riders to go 40 mph or faster.

A common bicycle helmet is inadequate protection for riders on faster e-bikes.

In Winter Garden, where the West Orange Trail bisects the city’s quaint downtown, city commissioners adopted new rules for e-bikers, e-scooters and other micro-mobility devices in January, requiring riders to wear protective helmets and carry government-issued photo ID.

“We’re seeing more riders, often minors, using these devices at high speeds on roadways, sidewalks and trails, including along the West Orange Trail. These behaviors are creating situations that put both riders and other road and trail users at risk,” said Kelly Carson, planning director for the bicycle-friendly city of 50,000 residents, as she outlined the intent of the ordinance to city commissioner.

In Osceola County, the sheriff’s department has hosted after-school e-bike safety courses at schools throughout the district. Last month, deputies led a class at Celebration K-8 School, teaching students how e-bikes work and the rules they have to follow on the road.

Kyle Routt, an Osceola County sheriff’s deputy who helped teach the course, said while on patrol he’s seen kids riding e-bikes too fast and without helmets. Officers can give out tickets to kids riding e-bikes dangerously, he said, but hope the classes open their eyes.

“It’s all about how can we provide information, make educational contacts with our youth, and let them know the safety concerns and the rules and laws of the road,” Routt said

shudak@orlandosentinel.com; swalker@orlandosentinel.com

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This story was originally published May 18, 2026 at 6:13 AM.