Hawaii
Hawaii E-Scooter Laws: Sidewalk, Helmet & Age Rules (2026)
Independently fact-checked against primary sources (last audited July 23, 2026). · Law checked current as of August 9, 2026. · 4 primary sources cited on this page. How we verify our legal content
This article is general information about Hawaii e-scooter laws and is not legal advice. Because the helmet-age rule changed only days before this article was written, verify current county rules or consult a Hawaii attorney before relying on any figure here for a citation or claim. Information last verified on 23 July 2026.
Are e-scooters legal in Hawaii?
Yes. Hawaii regulates "electric foot scooters" as a defined, dedicated vehicle class under HRS Chapter 291C, with the core operating rule at HRS 291C-139. This is a separate statutory category from Hawaii's "electric personal assistive mobility device" (EPAMD) definition at HRS 291C-134.5, which covers self-balancing Segway-style devices. The two are easy to conflate in casual summaries, but they carry different age and speed rules, so this page covers only the standup, kick-style electric foot scooter category.
HRS 291C-139(c) requires each county to regulate scooter operation on roadways, bikeways, and sidewalks, along with storage, speed, and insurance, but any county rule "shall [not] be less restrictive than the requirements set forth in this section." In other words, the state statute is a floor, not a ceiling: a county can tighten the rules but cannot loosen them below the state minimum.
What counts as an e-scooter in Hawaii
HRS 291C-1 defines an electric foot scooter as a device that:
- Weighs less than 75 pounds
- Has two or three wheels and handlebars
- Has either a stand-on floorboard or a seat/saddle with footrests
- Is powered by an electric motor, human power, or both
- Has a maximum speed of 15 mph on a paved, level surface
A foot-powered, non-motorized scooter is explicitly excluded from this definition.
Where you can ride
HRS 291C-139(h) sets the operating speed rule: a rider may not operate "at a speed other than is reasonable and prudent," and in no case faster than 15 mph. The section leaves roadway, bikeway, and sidewalk specifics to county regulation under subsection (c), so exactly where you can ride and at what local speed can differ by island and county. For Honolulu (the City and County of Honolulu, covering Oahu), this research could not independently confirm the current sidewalk rule against the primary county ordinance text; secondary sources disagree on whether Honolulu treats scooters more like low-speed bicycles (generally sidewalk-restricted) or allows sidewalk riding unless posted otherwise. Check the current Honolulu ordinance or the county's own guidance directly rather than relying on either secondhand claim.
Rider rules
- Age: HRS 291C-139(d) sets a hard floor: "No person under fifteen years of age shall operate an electric foot scooter... on a highway, street, roadway, or any other public property in the State." This part of the law was not changed by the 2026 amendment.
- Helmet, current law as of July 15, 2026: The same subsection (d) now reads, "No person under eighteen years of age shall operate an electric foot scooter or electric micro-mobility device unless the person wears a safety helmet securely fastened with a chin strap," meeting the bicycle-helmet standard in HRS 291C-150. Act 259 (HB2021 CD1), signed by Governor Josh Green on July 15, 2026, struck the prior "sixteen" and substituted "eighteen," effective immediately on signature. If you see an under-16 helmet rule cited for Hawaii anywhere, it is describing the law as it stood before July 15, 2026, and is now out of date.
- Rental and share-operator compliance: subsection (j), which covers rental and share operators' duty to ensure compliance, was amended by Act 259 alongside subsection (d). It now also requires a helmet for any renter or lessee under eighteen, matching the main rule rather than lagging behind it.
- License, registration, insurance: HRS 291C-139 does not impose a driver's license requirement for electric foot scooters. Registration, however, is required. HRS 249-35 provides that an electric foot scooter "shall be required to be registered, and shall be subject to a permanent registration fee of $30," paid by the owner to the director of finance and deposited into the bikeway fund under HRS 249-17.5. That $30 is a one-time permanent fee rather than an annual renewal, and Act 259 did not amend it. Insurance requirements are left to the counties under HRS 291C-139(c)(5).
Penalties
HRS 291C-139 carries no fine schedule of its own, so scooter violations fall under the general penalty section for the whole chapter, HRS 291C-161. Subsection (a) makes it "a violation for any person to violate any of the provisions of this chapter," and subsection (b) provides that every person who violates a provision "for which another penalty is not provided" shall be fined not more than $250 for a first violation, $300 for a second violation committed within one year of the first, and $500 for a third or subsequent violation committed within one year of the first.
Because 291C-139 appears on neither carve-out list in HRS 291C-161(c) or (d), age, helmet, and speed violations sit squarely inside that schedule. Subsection (i) of 291C-139 also points expressly to 291C-161(b) for reckless operation.
Those amounts are statutory maximums rather than fixed fines, so the court sets the actual figure up to the ceiling. County ordinances adopted under HRS 291C-139(c) sit on top of the state schedule and can carry their own penalties, so check your county's current traffic-violation schedule as well.
Enforcement in practice
Because Act 259 is only days old as of this writing, enforcement practices reflecting the new under-18 helmet threshold had not yet been documented in any source available for this page. Enforcement patterns, once they emerge, do not change what the statute already requires today; the under-18 helmet rule and the under-15 age floor are in force now, regardless of how quickly local enforcement catches up to the new threshold.
Honolulu e-scooter rules
Honolulu, the City and County of Honolulu covering Oahu, is Hawaii's largest county by population. This research could not confirm, against a primary Honolulu.gov or Revised Ordinances of Honolulu source, whether the county currently has an active permitted dockless or shared e-scooter rental program comparable to mainland cities, or exactly how it treats sidewalk riding. A commonly cited $100 sidewalk-riding fine for Honolulu could not be verified against a primary source either. Riders in Honolulu should check the county's current rules directly rather than relying on either of these unverified figures.
If a scooter-related crash happens in Hawaii, general Hawaii DUI and negligence rules can still apply to the rider or another driver involved; see RecordingLaw's Hawaii DUI Laws and Hawaii Car Accident Laws pages, and RecordingLaw's E-Scooter Laws by State hub to compare Hawaii's rules against other states.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the helmet age for e-scooters in Hawaii?
As of Act 259, signed July 15, 2026, riders under 18 must wear a helmet. This replaced the prior under-16 threshold, so any source describing a 16-and-under rule is now outdated.
What is the minimum age to ride an e-scooter in Hawaii?
15 years old on any highway, street, roadway or other public property in Hawaii, under HRS 291C-139(d). The section does not reach private property. This age floor was not changed by the 2026 helmet amendment.
How fast can an e-scooter legally go in Hawaii?
15 mph is both the device's maximum legal speed and the operating cap under HRS 291C-139.
Can a county in Hawaii set different e-scooter rules than the state?
Yes, but only in the stricter direction. Counties must regulate roadway, sidewalk, storage, and insurance rules, and any county rule cannot be less restrictive than the state floor.
Is there really a mistake in Hawaii's e-scooter law about helmet age?
No. Act 259 updated both the main helmet rule in subsection (d) and the rental-compliance provision in subsection (j) together, raising the age from 16 to 18 in each. There is no unreconciled gap between them.
Do I need a license or registration to ride an e-scooter in Hawaii?
No license, but yes to registration. HRS 291C-139 imposes no driver's license requirement, but HRS 249-35 requires every electric foot scooter to be registered and sets a permanent registration fee of $30, paid once to the director of finance. Check with your county's finance department for the current process.
Updates
Corrected the penalties section to state Hawaii's statutory fine schedule under HRS 291C-161(b) ($250/$300/$500), clarified that e-scooter registration is required with a one-time $30 fee under HRS 249-35, and narrowed the minimum-age takeaway to public roads and public property; the under-18 helmet rule under Act 259 was re-verified against the enrolled bill text and is unchanged.
Live-verified Hawaii's Act 259 (HB2021 CD1) against the official enacted bill text at capitol.hawaii.gov: the helmet-age-to-18 rule is confirmed current law, but the article's claim of a leftover 'age 16' gap in the rental-compliance subsection was itself wrong — the enacted Act updated that subsection to 18 as well.
Governing law re-checked for recent changes
Independently fact-checked against the cited primary sources
The Law Behind This Article
This article rests on the statutory provisions below, held in our own legal record and retrieved from the official source. Tap a section to read the operative text.
Hawaii Revised Statutes, Chapter 291C: [STATEWIDE TRAFFIC CODE]
§ 291C-139Electric foot scootersIn force
(a) This section shall apply whenever an electric foot scooter is operated upon any highway, street, roadway, or other designated public area set aside for the use of electric foot scooters. (b) Every person operating an electric foot scooter upon a roadway shall be granted all of the rights and shall be subject to all of the duties applicable to a driver of a vehicle under this chapter, except as to provisions of this: (1) Section to the contrary; and (2) Chapter that, by their nature, can have no application. (c) The counties by ordinance shall regulate operations of electric foot scooters with regard to, but not limited to, the following: (1) Operations in or upon roadways, bikeways, bicycle paths, and sidewalks; (2) Storage and docking locations; (3) Restrictions on maximum speed; (4) Safety considerations; and (5) Insurance requirements; provided that no authority adopted in accordance with this subsection shall be less restrictive than the requirements set forth in this section. (d) No person under fifteen years of age shall operate an electric foot scooter on a highway, street, roadway, or any other public property in the State.
Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-09-07 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at capitol.hawaii.gov
§ 291C-1DefinitionsIn force
As used in this chapter: "Alley" means a street or highway intended to provide access to the rear or side of lots or buildings and not intended for the purpose of through vehicular traffic. "Arterial street" means any United States or state numbered route, controlled-access highway, or other major radial or circumferential street or highway designated by counties within their respective jurisdictions as part of a major arterial system of streets or highways. "Authorized emergency vehicle" includes fire department vehicles, police vehicles, ambulances, ocean safety vehicles, law enforcement vehicles, conservation and resources enforcement vehicles, and office of the state fire marshal vehicles authorized and approved pursuant to section 291-31.5 that are publicly owned and other publicly or privately owned vehicles designated as such by a county council.
Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-30 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at capitol.hawaii.gov
Cited in 12 court opinions in our collectionLatest citing opinion in our collection: 2023
Opinions citing this section in our collection:
- State v. Davia (Hawaii Supreme Court 1998, 87 Haw. 249)“…original, indicating omitted and added text, respectively). HRS § 291C-1 (1985) provided (and still provides,…”
- State v. Liuafi (Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeals 1981, 1 Haw. App. 625)“…The word “accident” is not defined in the statute, although HRS § 291C-1 (1976) contains definitions of forty te…”
- State v. Barros (Hawaii Supreme Court 2002, 98 Haw. 337)“…"traffic" is defined as referring in part to "pedestrian," HRS § 291C-1 (1993 & Supp.2001), which, in turn, is…”
Identified automatically from the court opinions citing this section — not a ranking of which case controls.
§ 291C-150Bicycle helmetsIn force
(a) No person under sixteen years of age shall operate a bicycle upon a street, bikeway, or any other public property unless that person is wearing a properly fitted and fastened bicycle helmet that has been tested by a nationally recognized agency such as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the National Safety Council, or the Children's Safety Network, and is designed to fit the user and protect against head trauma. This requirement also applies to a person who rides upon a bicycle while in a restraining seat that is attached to the bicycle or who rides in a trailer towed by the bicycle. (b) A person who provides bicycles for hire shall not rent a bicycle to any person unless every person who is under age sixteen is wearing a bicycle helmet, as required in subsection (a), while operating the rented bicycle, occupying a restraining seat that is attached to the rented bicycle, or riding in a trailer towed by the rented bicycle. (c) A violation of this section is punishable by a fine of not more than $25.
Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-30 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at capitol.hawaii.gov
§ 291C-134.5Electric personal assistive mobility devices; restrictionsIn force
(a) Unless otherwise prohibited or regulated by a county ordinance, an electric personal assistive mobility device may be operated on sidewalks, at a speed no greater than eight miles per hour, and bicycle paths of the State. The sale of consumer models of electric personal assistive mobility devices in the State shall be limited to those models operated by a key that can set the maximum forward speed at no more than eight miles per hour. (b) An electric personal assistive mobility device operator shall be sixteen years of age or older. (c) An electric personal assistive mobility device operator on a sidewalk or bicycle path shall exercise due care to avoid colliding with, and shall yield the right-of-way to, persons traveling on foot and those using mobility aids. (d) An electric personal assistive mobility device operator shall give an audible signal before overtaking and passing any pedestrian. (e) An electric personal assistive mobility device operator shall wear or equip the electric personal assistive mobility device with reflectors and a headlamp when operating between one-half hour after sunset and one-half hour before sunrise.
Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-30 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at capitol.hawaii.gov
§ 291C-161Penalties; photo red light imaging detector system fines; automated speed enforcement system finesIn forcecited in 5 of our articles
(a) It shall be a violation for any person to violate any of the provisions of this chapter, except as otherwise specified in subsections (c) and (d) and unless the violation is by other law of this State declared to be a felony, misdemeanor, or petty misdemeanor. (b) Except as provided in subsections (c) and (d), every person who is determined to have violated any provision of this chapter for which another penalty is not provided shall be fined not more than: (1) $250 for a first violation thereof; (2) $300 for a second violation committed within one year after the date of the first violation; and (3) $500 for a third or subsequent violation committed within one year after the date of the first violation. (c) Every person convicted under or found in violation of section 291C-12, 291C-12.5, 291C-12.6, 291C-13, 291C-14, 291C-15, 291C-16, 291C-72, 291C-73, 291C-95, 291C-102, 291C-103, 291C-104, or 291C-105 shall be sentenced or fined in accordance with those sections.
Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-30 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at capitol.hawaii.gov
Cited in 10 court opinions in our collectionLatest citing opinion in our collection: 2021
Opinions citing this section in our collection:
- State v. Gonzalez. (Hawaii Supreme Court 2012, 128 Haw. 314)“…The penalty for a violation of HRS § 291C-102 is set by HRS § 291C-161 (2011). HRS § 291C-161 provides in rele…”
- State v. Shimabukuro (Hawaii Supreme Court 2002, 100 Haw. 324)“…ot provide for any term of imprisonment as a penalty. See HRS § 291C-161 (Supp.2000). HRS § 291-4.5 was repealed…”
- State v. Barros (Hawaii Supreme Court 2002, 98 Haw. 337)“…lking is a fine. [2] No jail sentence is prescribed. See HRS §§ 291C-161 (Supp.1999) & 291C-73. HRS chapter 291C…”
Identified automatically from the court opinions citing this section — not a ranking of which case controls.
Also relied on in: Hawaii Windshield Mounting Laws (2026 Guide), Hawaii Camera Ticket Laws: State-Run Red Light and Speed Cameras, Hawaii Hit and Run Laws: Penalties and What to Do
Hawaii Revised Statutes, Chapter 249: COUNTY VEHICULAR TAXES
§ 249-35Electric foot scooters; registrationIn force
An electric foot scooter shall be required to be registered, and shall be subject to a permanent registration fee of $30, to be paid by the owners thereof to the director of finance to be deposited into the bikeway fund under section 249-17.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes. [L 2021, c 174, §1]
Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-30 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at capitol.hawaii.gov
§ 249-17.5Bikeway fund; establishedIn force
All fees collected under sections 249-14 and 249-14.5 shall be deposited in a fund to be known as the "bikeway fund" and shall be expended in the county in which the fees are collected for the following purposes: (1) For acquisition, design, construction, improvement, repair, and maintenance of bikeways, including the installation and repair of storm drains and bridges; (2) For installation, maintenance, and repair of bikeway lights and power, including replacement of old bikeway lights; (3) For purposes and functions connected with traffic control and preservation of safety upon bikeways; (4) For payment of interest on and redemption of bonds issued to finance bikeway construction and improvements; and (5) For the promotion of bicycling transportation and recreation. [L 1974, c 105, pt of §2; am L 1984, c 273, §2; am L 1988, c 264, §7]
Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-30 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at capitol.hawaii.gov
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Sources and References
- Hawaii Revised Statutes § 291C-1 (Definitions, incl. "electric foot scooter")(capitol.hawaii.gov).gov
- Hawaii Revised Statutes § 291C-139 (Operation of electric foot scooters and electric micro-mobility devices)(capitol.hawaii.gov).gov
- Act 259, Session Laws of Hawaii 2026 (HB2021 CD1), signed by Governor Josh Green on July 15, 2026(capitol.hawaii.gov).gov
- Hawaii Department of Transportation, press release on Act 259 effective date(hidot.hawaii.gov).gov
- RecordingLaw.com, Hawaii DUI Laws(recordinglaw.com)
- RecordingLaw.com, Hawaii Car Accident Laws(recordinglaw.com)
- Hawaii Revised Statutes 291C-139 (Electric foot scooters)(capitol.hawaii.gov)
- Hawaii Revised Statutes 291C-161(b) (Penalties for chapter 291C violations: $250 / $300 / $500)(capitol.hawaii.gov)
- Hawaii Revised Statutes 249-35 (Electric foot scooters; registration; $30 permanent registration fee)(capitol.hawaii.gov)
- Hawaii Revised Statutes 291C-1 (Definitions, incl. electric foot scooter)(capitol.hawaii.gov)
- HB2021 CD1, enrolled text (Act 259, Session Laws of Hawaii 2026); SECTION 11 amends HRS 291C-139(d) and (j), SECTION 22 sets the effective date on approval(capitol.hawaii.gov)
- Hawaii State Legislature, measure status for HB 2021 (2026): Act 259, on 07/15/2026 (Gov. Msg. No. 1362)(capitol.hawaii.gov)
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