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373.11 LICENSE REQUIRED; APPLICATION; FEE.
   (a)   License Required. No person shall operate a bicycle upon any street, sidewalk or other public place in the City without having secured a license therefor.
   (b)   License Application.
      (1)   An application for bicycle license shall be made by the owner in writing, in duplicate, upon blank forms furnished by the Chief of Police.
      (2)   Such application shall be signed by the owner and if the owner is a person under eighteen years of age, the signature shall be witnessed by a parent of the owner, or if no parent is living, then by the legal guardian of the owner. The application shall state the full name and address of the owner of the bicycle, the name of the manufacturer, the serial number of the frame thereof, the approximate date when the owner obtained title thereto, and if not new, when obtained, the name and address of the person from whom it was obtained.
 
   (c)   Inspection of Bicycle Prior to License Issuance. The bicycle to be licensed shall be brought to the police station at the time of presenting the application for the purpose of examination and the Chief of Police shall examine the bicycle, and if he finds the mechanical condition thereof such that it can be safely operated, and further finds that the statements made in the license application are true, he shall issue the applicant a license card and a metal plate containing the license number for the bicycle.
 
   (d)   License Fee. The Chief of Police shall not issue a bicycle license to any person unless that person pays a fee of one dollar ($1.00) to the City.
 
   (e)   License Term. The license required by this article shall be valid as long as the licensee owns the bicycle; provided, however, that such license shall in any event expire three years after its issuance.
 
   (f)   Loss of License Plate. A bicycle licensee shall report immediately to the Chief of Police the loss or destruction of his license plate, and the circumstances surrounding the loss or destruction thereof. The Chief of Police shall issue a duplicate license plate upon payment of a fee of one dollar ($1.00).
 
   (g)   Surrender of License Upon Loss or Sale of Bicycle. When any bicycle which has been registered and licensed, as herein provided, is sold, or is otherwise disposed of, or destroyed, the licensee shall immediately surrender to the Chief of Police the license card and plate issued therefor, with the name and address of the new owner, if any, written on the face of the license. The Chief of Police shall immediately make proper endorsements thereof on his records and issue a new license card and plate to the new owner for a fee of one dollar ($1.00). The number of any license surrendered as provided in this section shall not be reissued.
 
   (h)   Inspection. Any member of the Police Department is hereby authorized to inspect any bicycle, at any reasonable time, for the purpose of making a checkup of the license plate and license number, serial number and for the purpose of determining its mechanical condition.
 
   (i)   Removal or Destruction of License Plate. No person shall remove from the bicycle, destroy, mutilate or alter any bicycle license plate issued pursuant to the provisions of this section.
 
   (j)   Removal or Destruction of Serial Number. No person, willfully or maliciously, shall remove, destroy, mutilate or alter the serial number of any bicycle licensed pursuant to the provisions of this section.
 
   (k)   Reports to Chief of Absence of Serial Number. No person residing in the City, or any dealer in bicycles operating in the City, shall purchase, receive in trade or otherwise acquire any bicycle from which the serial number on the frame has been removed, destroyed, mutilated or altered, without first reporting the same to the Chief of Police.
 
   (l)   Chief Authorized to Affix Serial Number. The Chief of Police is hereby authorized to stamp numbers on the frame of a bicycle in a legible manner for identification purposes, upon which no serial number can be found, or upon which the serial number is illegible or insufficient for identification purposes.
 
   (m)   Violations. After a hearing affording due process, the Chief of Police may revoke or suspend for a period of thirty days any bicycle license for any violation of any provisions of this section or any applicable provision of the statutes relating to bicycles; in addition, the Chief of Police may impound the bicycle of any such violator for a period not exceeding thirty days.
(1977 Code Secs. 4-1 to 4-13.)
 
373.12 RIDING ON SIDEWALKS.
   (a)   No person shall operate a bicycle upon a sidewalk within the downtown business district or upon a sidewalk where pavement and sidewalk markings are erected prohibiting such operation.
(Ord. 77-38. Passed 12-1-77.)
 
   (b)   Whoever violates any provision of this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor on a first offense; on a second offense within one year after the first offense, the person is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree; on each subsequent offense within one year after the first offense, the person is guilty of a misdemeanor of the third degree.
 
373.13 PATHS EXCLUSIVELY FOR BICYCLES.
   (a)   No person shall operate a motor vehicle, snowmobile, or all-purpose vehicle upon any path set aside for the exclusive use of bicycles, when an appropriate sign giving notice of such use is posted on the path.
   Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect any rule of the Ohio Director of Natural Resources governing the operation of motor vehicles, snowmobiles, all-purpose vehicles, and bicycles on lands under the Director’s jurisdiction.
 
   (b)   Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, whoever violates this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor. If, within one year of the offense, the offender previously has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to one predicate motor vehicle or traffic offense, whoever violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree. If, within one year of the offense, the offender previously has been convicted of two or more predicate motor vehicle or traffic offenses, whoever violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the third degree.
   If the offender commits the offense while distracted and the distracting activity is a contributing factor to the commission of the offense, the offender is subject to the additional fine established under Section 303.991 of the Traffic Code.
(ORC 4511.713)
 
373.14 ELECTRIC BICYCLES.
   (a)   (1)   The operation of a class 1 electric bicycle and a class 2 electric bicycle is permitted on a path set aside for the exclusive use of bicycles or on a shared-use path, unless the Municipality by resolution, ordinance, or rule prohibits the use of a class 1 electric bicycle or class 2 electric bicycle on such a path.
      (2)   No person shall operate a class 3 electric bicycle on a path set aside for the exclusive use of bicycles or a shared-use path unless that path is within or adjacent to a highway or the Municipality by resolution, ordinance, or rule authorizes the use of a class 3 electric bicycle on such a path.
      (3)   No person shall operate a class 1 electric bicycle, a class 2 electric bicycle or a class 3 electric bicycle on a path that is intended to be used primarily for mountain biking, hiking, equestrian use, or other similar uses, or any other single track or natural surface trail that has historically been reserved for nonmotorized use, unless the Municipality by resolution, ordinance or rule authorizes the use of a class 1 electric bicycle, a class 2 electric bicycle, or a class 3 electric bicycle on such a path.
      (4)    Subsections (a)(2) and (a)(3) of this section do not apply to a law enforcement officer, or other person sworn to enforce the criminal and traffic laws of the state, using an electric bicycle while in the performance of the officer’s duties.
   (b)   (1)   No person under sixteen years of age shall operate a class 3 electric bicycle; however, a person under sixteen years of age may ride as a passenger on a class 3 electric bicycle that is designed to accommodate passengers.
      (2)   No person shall operate or be a passenger on a class 3 electric bicycle unless the person is wearing a protective helmet that meets the standards established by the Consumer Product Safety Commission or the American Society for Testing and Materials.
   (c)   (1)   Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, whoever operates an electric bicycle in a manner that is prohibited under subsection (a) of this section and whoever violates subsection (b) of this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor. If, within one year of the offense, the offender previously has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to one predicate motor vehicle or traffic offense, whoever violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree. If, within one year of the offense, the offender previously has been convicted of two or more predicate motor vehicle or traffic offenses, whoever violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the third degree.
      (2)   The offenses established under subsection (c)(1) of this section are strict liability offenses and strict liability is a culpable mental state for purposes of Ohio R.C. 2901.20. The designation of these offenses as strict liability offenses shall not be construed to imply that any other offense, for which there is no specified degree of culpability, is not a strict liability offense.
         (ORC 4511.522)