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this post was submitted on 20 Feb 2026
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micromobility - Bikes, scooters, boards: Whatever floats your goat, this is micromobility
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Ebikes, bicycles, scooters, skateboards, longboards, eboards, motorcycles, skates, unicycles, heelies, or an office chair: Whatever floats your goat, this is all things micromobility!
"Transportation using lightweight vehicles such as bicycles or scooters, especially electric ones that may be borrowed as part of a self-service rental program in which people rent vehicles for short-term use within a town or city.
micromobility is seen as a potential solution to moving people more efficiently around cities"
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"No motorcycle license" where?
Presumably Japan, which appears to be the only market in which this will be sold. In the US this would absolutely fall into the legal limbo where most low-output electric two wheeled things are inevitably mired, which will result in most/all states refusing to plate them.
If you're going to have to ride dirty anyhow, you may as well just rice out a Surron and at least have a hope of outrunning the cops on it.
In California, the largest motorcycle market in the USA, this would be regulated as a moped (CVC Section 406), since it is electric, has a motor less than 3 kW (4 HP in old money), and a top speed of less than 30 MPH (48 kph).
Riders wouldn't need an M1 motorcycle license, but instead an M2 moped license would suffice. An M1 license allows riding anything that needs an M2 license, such as this moped. The process for an M2 is classroom instruction, and then a brief practical exam. There is no annual registration for mopeds, but there is a one-time plate fee, to obtain a plate from the DMV. There is no insurance requirement for mopeds.
A moped can be ridden in either traffic lanes and bike lanes (but not shoulders, which only bicycles are permitted to use). Whereas bicycles are obligated to use a bike lane when present (with a few obvious exceptions), a moped is not forced to use a bike lane. When riding in a traffic lane, a moped must keep to the right-most lane if slower than all other traffic.
IANAL, but all of this can be verified in the CVC. The result is that mopeds (a vestige of the 1970s oil crisis) could absolutely make a comeback if priced correctly, since ebikes already provide similar mobility.
yeah, my motor is 750W (right under 1HP), top speed 28. it has a throttle so it's class 2 electric, no license needed.
i really want to figure out how to change the max speed on the throttle to something lower so i can get better mileage and maybe go someplace a little further, but i'm not entirely sure how the math maths on that one (friction and air resistance y'know) and not have to buy an extra battery, but we'll see
If you have a question about your own ebike and not the Honda moped in the OP's post, you should start a new post so that other people can try to answer.
That said, at least in California and many other states, 28 MPH is not allowed on a Class 2 ebike. Only a Class 3 ebike can do 28 MPH, but a throttle is not allowed on a Class 3. Class 2 tops out at 20 MPH.
oh i've got the manual and all that, i just can't get the change to commit for some reason. and you're right, it's set at 20. i've got a flat and it's been raining for a while so i haven't taken her out for a month or so. brain fog and all that.