Children under the age of 12 should be banned from using electric bicycles to prevent accidents and make sure they get enough exercise, Dutch cycling association Fietsersbond and specialist sports doctors say.

“We are very worried about the growing number of children on e-bikes and fatbikes,” Maarten Koornneef, of the expert panel Cycling& Health, told the AD. There is currently no minimum age limit for electric bikes.

“Dutch teenagers move too little as it is,” Koornneef said. “Just 42% of 12 to 17-year-olds meet health council guidelines and do an hour of physical activity a day.”

Preliminary results from research carried out by Twente University and the Gelderse Vallei hospital have shown that riding an e-bike takes 50% less effort than riding a normal bike.

Sports doctors are calling the finding “disastrous” because physical exercise is vital for the development of muscles, and motor and coordination skills at a young age, and lays the groundwork for a healthier later life.

Traffic safety is another worry, with figures from VeiligheidNL showing that an average of 500 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17-year-olds needed hospital help for  injuries resulting from accidents involving e-bikes in 2024.

The Fietsersbond supports the ban for the under-12s. “That is a wise measure, which can be easily policed if coupled to an ID card,” chairwoman Esther van Garderen said.

A minimum age of 16 would not be feasible, she said, because it would hurt children who live in the country and often have to travel big distances.

A spokesman for caretaker infrastructure minister Robert Tieman said MPs will be briefed on the subject in December.