FRESNO, Calif. – As youth injuries from e-bikes continue to rise on both a national and local level, health and safety leaders gathered at Bullard High School to bring attention to the dangers of riding without proper preparation and protection.
Officials from Fresno Unified School District, Valley Children’s, the California Highway Patrol and the Fresno Police Department gathered outside the Bullard High on Wednesday morning for a “National Bike and Roll to School Day” event.
Schools across the U.S. participate in the event annually, which encourages students to swap car rides for fresh air – walking, biking or riding scooters to campus – but this year, the focus shifted to a growing concern: safety surrounding e-bikes and e-scooters.
“Every day, we make safety a top priority in our schools, and everyone here today shares the same commitment in keeping our students safe,” said Ben Drati, deputy superintendent of Fresno Unified School District.
A combination of higher speeds, less riding experience and inconsistent helmet use has created a dangerous mix that’s creating concern for families and officials alike.
“We want our children outside. We want them to be physically active, and riding a bike is a great way to do that,” said Dr. Carmela Sosa, Medical Director of the Guilds Center for Community Health at Valley Children’s. “And while we want our children engaged in physical activity, their safety is our highest priority. The increasing use of e-bikes and e-scooters brings new safety challenges we cannot ignore.”
Injuries related to e-bikes and e-scooters nationally rose by more than 30-fold between 2017 and 2022, Dr. Sosa said, and she added that the statistics in the Central Valley reflect a similar reality.
Valley Children’s Hospital has seen “an alarming increase” in e-bike- and e-scooter-related injuries, Dr. Sosa said. The hospital saw 22 e-bike trauma injuries in 2025, and has already nearly surpassed that total in just the first four months of 2026.
While youth under the age of 18 make up just 21% of the population, they account for a disproportionate 35% of all e-bike-related traumatic injuries.
“Of those in our emergency department, only one in four riders was wearing a helmet. The significance of this is that non-helmeted riders have an almost two-fold risk of head injury, compared to those wearing helmets,” Dr. Sosa said.
“A helmet is the single most effective way to prevent head injury resulting from a bicycle crash. We have a simple saying: use your head, wear a helmet,” said Kristina Pasma, injury prevention coordinator at Valley Children’s and coalition coordinator for Safe Kids Central California.
Beyond students and riders, officials also made a plea to drivers to remain vigilant, especially during the busy morning and afternoon school commute, when young riders are most vulnerable.
“As a community, we need to prioritize safe routes to and from schools and around town,” Dr. Sosa said. “Safety must come first, because every student deserves to get to and from school and home safely.”
The Valley Children’s Injury Prevention Program is the lead agency for Safe Kids Central California. To learn more about the program, click here.
