Whenever a motor vehicle equipped with head lamps as required in this article is also equipped with any auxiliary lamps or a spot lamp or any other lamp on the front thereof projecting a beam of an intensity greater than three hundred candlepower, not more than a total of four of any such lamps on the front of a vehicle shall be lighted at any one time when upon a highway. Any person who violates any provision of this section commits a class B traffic infraction.
Source: L. 94: Entire title amended with relocations, p. 2253, � 1, effective January 1, 1995.
Editor's note: This section is similar to former � 42-4-217 as it existed prior to 1994, and the former � 42-4-219 was relocated to � 42-4-222.
42-4-220. Low-power scooters - lighting equipment - department control - use and operation. (1) (a) A low-power scooter when in use at the times specified in section 42-4-204 shall be equipped with a lamp on the front that shall emit a white light visible from a distance of at least five hundred feet to the front and with a red reflector on the rear, of a type approved by the department, that shall be visible from all distances from fifty feet to three hundred feet to the rear when directly in front of lawful upper beams of head lamps on a motor vehicle. A lamp emitting a red light visible from a distance of five hundred feet to the rear may be used in addition to the red reflector.
(b) No person shall operate a low-power scooter unless it is equipped with a bell or other device capable of giving a signal audible for a distance of at least one hundred feet; except that a low-power scooter shall not be equipped with nor shall any person use upon a low-power scooter a siren or whistle.
(c) A low-power scooter shall be equipped with a brake that will enable the operator to make the braked wheels skid on dry, level, clean pavement.
(2) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2009, (HB 09-1026), ch. 281, p. 1274, � 44, effective October 1, 2009.)
(3) (a) Any lighted lamp or illuminating device upon a motor vehicle, other than head lamps, spot lamps, auxiliary lamps, flashing turn signals, emergency vehicle warning lamps, and school bus warning lamps, which projects a beam of light of an intensity greater than three hundred candlepower shall be so directed that no part of the high-intensity portion of the beam will strike the level of the roadway on which the vehicle stands at a distance of more than seventy-five feet from the vehicle.
(b) Repealed.
(c) This subsection (3) shall not be construed to prohibit the use on any vehicle of simultaneously flashing hazard warning lights as provided by section 42-4-215 (7).
(4) No person shall have for sale, sell, or offer for sale, for use upon or as a part of the equipment of a motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer or for use upon any such vehicle, any head lamp, auxiliary or fog lamp, rear lamp, signal lamp, or reflector, which reflector is required under this article, or parts of any of the foregoing which tend to change the original design or performance thereof, unless of a type which has been approved by the department.
(5) No person shall have for sale, sell, or offer for sale, for use upon or as a part of the equipment of a motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer, any lamp or device mentioned in this section which has been approved by the department unless such lamp or device bears thereon the trademark or name under which it is approved so as to be legible when installed.
(6) No person shall use upon any motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer any lamps mentioned in this section unless said lamps are mounted, adjusted, and aimed in accordance with instructions of the department.
(7) The department is authorized to approve or disapprove lighting standards and specifications for the approval of such lighting devices and their installation, adjustment, and aiming and their adjustment when in use on motor vehicles.
(8) The department is required to approve or disapprove any lighting device, of a type on which approval is specifically required in this article, within a reasonable time after such device has been submitted.
(9) The department is authorized to provide the procedure which shall be followed when any device is submitted for approval.
(10) The department upon approving any such lamp or device shall issue to the applicant a certificate of approval, together with any instructions determined by the department to be reasonably necessary.
(11) The department shall provide lists of all lamps and devices by name and type which have been approved by it.
(12) When the department has reason to believe that an approved device as being sold commercially does not comply with the requirements of this article, the executive director of the department or the director's designated representatives may, after giving thirty days' previous notice to the person holding the certificate of approval for such device in the state, conduct a hearing upon the question of compliance of said approved device. After said hearing, said executive director shall determine whether said approved device meets the requirements of this article. If said device does not meet the requirements of this article, the director shall give notice to the person holding the certificate of approval for such device in this state.
(13) If, at the expiration of ninety days after such notice, the person holding the certificate of approval for such device has failed to establish to the satisfaction of the executive director of the department that said approved device as thereafter to be sold meets the requirements of this article, said executive director shall suspend or revoke the approval issued therefor and may require that all said devices sold since the notification following the hearing be replaced with devices that do comply with the requirements of this article, until or unless such device, at the sole expense of the applicant, shall be resubmitted to and retested by an authorized testing agency and is found to meet the requirements of this article. The department may, at the time of the retest, purchase in the open market and submit to the testing agency one or more sets of such approved devices, and, if such device upon such retest fails to meet the requirements of this article, the department may refuse to renew the certificate of approval of such device.
(14) Any person who violates any provision of this section commits a class B traffic infraction.
Source: L. 94: Entire title amended with relocations, p. 2254, � 1, effective January 1, 1995. L. 2004: (3)(b) repealed, p. 1081, � 4, effective July 1. L. 2009: (1) and (2) amended, (HB 09-1026), ch. 281, p. 1274, � 44, effective October 1.
Editor's note: This section is similar to former � 42-4-218 as it existed prior to 1994, and the former � 42-4-220 was relocated to � 42-4-223.
Cross references: For specifications for lighting of snow-removal equipment, see � 42-4-224 (4); for authorization for red lights on brand inspectors' cars, see � 35-53-128 (3).
42-4-221. Bicycle, electric scooter, and personal mobility device equipment - penalty - sale of electrical assisted bicycle equipment requirements - deceptive trade practice. (1) No other provision of this part 2 and no provision of part 3 of this article 4 applies to a bicycle, electrical assisted bicycle, electric scooter, or EPAMD or to equipment for use on a bicycle, electrical assisted bicycle, electric scooter, or EPAMD except those provisions in this article 4 made specifically applicable to such a vehicle.
(2) Every bicycle, electrical assisted bicycle, electric scooter, or EPAMD in use at the times described in section 42-4-204 shall be equipped with a lamp on the front emitting a white light visible from a distance of at least five hundred feet to the front.
(3) Every bicycle, electrical assisted bicycle, electric scooter, or EPAMD shall be equipped with a red reflector of a type approved by the department, which shall be visible for six hundred feet to the rear when directly in front of lawful lower beams of head lamps on a motor vehicle.
(4) Every bicycle, electrical assisted bicycle, electric scooter, or EPAMD when in use at the times described in section 42-4-204 shall be equipped with reflective material of sufficient size and reflectivity to be visible from both sides for six hundred feet when directly in front of lawful lower beams of head lamps on a motor vehicle or, in lieu of such reflective material, with a lighted lamp visible from both sides from a distance of at least five hundred feet.
(5) A bicycle, electrical assisted bicycle, electric scooter, or EPAMD or its rider may be equipped with lights or reflectors in addition to those required by subsections (2) to (4) of this section.
(6) A bicycle, electrical assisted bicycle, or electric scooter shall not be equipped with, nor shall any person use upon a bicycle, electrical assisted bicycle, or electric scooter, any siren or whistle.
(7) Every bicycle, electrical assisted bicycle, or electric scooter shall be equipped with a brake or brakes that will enable its rider to stop the bicycle, electrical assisted bicycle, or electric scooter within twenty-five feet from a speed of ten miles per hour on dry, level, clean pavement.
(8) A person engaged in the business of selling bicycles, electrical assisted bicycles, or electric scooters at retail shall not sell any bicycle, electrical assisted bicycle, or electric scooter unless the bicycle, electrical assisted bicycle, or electric scooter has an identifying number permanently stamped or cast on its frame.
(8.5) A local government may regulate the operation of an electric scooter in a manner that is no more restrictive than the manner in which the local government may regulate the operation of a class 1 electrical assisted bicycle.
(9) (a) On or after January 1, 2018, every manufacturer or distributor of new electrical assisted bicycles intended for sale or distribution in this state shall permanently affix to each electrical assisted bicycle, in a prominent location, a label that contains the classification number, top assisted speed, and motor wattage of the electrical assisted bicycle. The label must be printed in the arial font in at least nine-point type.
(b) A person shall not knowingly modify an electrical assisted bicycle so as to change the speed capability or motor engagement of the electrical assisted bicycle without also appropriately replacing, or causing to be replaced, the label indicating the classification required by subsection (9)(a) of this section.
(c) On or after January 1, 2027, the label required by subsection (9)(a) of this section must, for a multiple mode electrical assisted bicycle, also identify the highest class or each of the classes in which the electrical assisted bicycle is capable of operation.
(10) (a) An electrical assisted bicycle must comply with the equipment and manufacturing requirements for bicycles adopted by the United States consumer product safety commission and codified at 16 CFR 1512 or its successor regulation.
(b) A class 2 electrical assisted bicycle must operate in a manner so that the electric motor is disengaged or ceases to function when the brakes are applied. Class 1 and class 3 electrical assisted bicycles must be equipped with a mechanism or circuit that cannot be bypassed and that causes the electric motor to disengage or cease to function when the rider stops pedaling.
(c) A class 3 electrical assisted bicycle must be equipped with a speedometer that displays, in miles per hour, the speed the electrical assisted bicycle is traveling.
(d) A multiple mode electrical assisted bicycle must meet all the requirements in this article 4 applicable to each respective class of electrical assisted bicycle for which the multiple mode electrical assisted bicycle provides for operation.
(11) A person that violates subsections (1) to (10) of this section commits a class B traffic infraction.
(12) (a) A person shall not sell or offer to sell, in a store or online, a vehicle that is not an electrical assisted bicycle if the vehicle is falsely labeled as a class 1, class 2, class 3, or multiple mode electrical assisted bicycle.
(b) A person shall not advertise, offer for sale, or sell, in a store or online, a vehicle that is not an electrical assisted bicycle:
(I) By representing the vehicle as an electrical assisted bicycle; or
(II) (A) Using the words electrical assisted bicycle, electric bike, or e-bike or other similar terms without providing the following disclosure in clearly legible, written form: This vehicle is not an electrical assisted bicycle as defined in state law pursuant to section 42-1-102, Colorado Revised Statutes. It is instead a type of motor vehicle and subject to applicable motor vehicle laws if used on public roads or public lands. Your insurance policies may not provide coverage for accidents involving the use of this vehicle. To determine coverage, you should contact your insurance company or agent.
(B) The disclosure required pursuant to subsection (12)(b)(II)(A) of this section must be provided at the store where the vehicle is advertised or sold and, for a vehicle advertised or sold online, on the website for the vehicle and in any social media marketing for the vehicle.
(c) A person that violates this subsection (12) commits a deceptive trade practice under the Colorado Consumer Protection Act, article 1 of title 6.
(13) A seller of an electrical assisted bicycle shall disclose to the purchaser:
(a) The motor power in watts of the electrical assisted bicycle;
(b) The maximum speed of the electrical assisted bicycle;
(c) Whether the electrical assisted bicycle is a class 1, class 2, class 3, or multiple mode electrical assisted bicycle; and
(d) For a class 3 electrical assisted bicycle or multiple mode electrical assisted bicycle that is capable of operating as a class 3 electrical assisted bicycle, a statement that it is unlawful for an individual who is under sixteen years of age to operate a class 3 electrical assisted bicycle in Colorado.
(14) (a) A person shall not manufacture, distribute, assemble, recondition, sell, offer to sell, lease, or rent a lithium-ion battery or a second-use lithium-ion battery as part of or intended for use in an electrical assisted bicycle unless the lithium-ion battery or second-use lithium-ion battery has been certified by an accredited testing laboratory for compliance with a battery standard referenced in UL 2849 or EN 15194 or another safety standard approved by the director of the division of fire prevention and control.
(b) (I) If certification has been obtained pursuant to subsection (14)(a) of this section, the certification or the logo, wordmark, or name of the accredited testing laboratory that provided the certification must be displayed:
(A) On the packaging or documentation for an electrical assisted bicycle or a lithium-ion battery or second-use lithium-ion battery intended for use in an electrical assisted bicycle at the time of sale; or
(B) Directly on the electrical assisted bicycle or the lithium-ion battery or second-use lithium-ion battery intended for use in an electrical assisted bicycle at the time of sale.
(II) The certification or the logo, wordmark, or name of the accredited testing laboratory that provided the certification need not be displayed for an electrical assisted bicycle that is being sold secondhand or rented.
Source: L. 94: Entire title amended with relocations, p. 2256, � 1, effective January 1, 1995. L. 2009: (1) to (8) amended, (HB 09-1026), ch. 281, p. 1275, � 45, effective October 1. L. 2017: (9) amended and (10) and (11) added, (HB 17-1151), ch. 98, p. 296, � 4, effective August 9. L. 2019: (1) to (8) amended and (8.5) added, (HB 19-1221), ch. 271, p. 2559, � 5, effective May 23. L. 2025: (9)(c), (10)(d), (12), (13), and (14) added and (11) amended, (HB 25-1197), ch. 279, p. 1448, � 1, effective August 6.
Editor's note: (1) This section is similar to former � 42-4-218.5 as it existed prior to 1994, and the former � 42-4-221 was relocated to � 42-4-224.
(2) Section 4(2) of chapter 279 (HB 25-1197), Session Laws of Colorado 2025, provides that the act changing this section applies to conduct occurring on or after August 6, 2025.
Cross references: For the penalty for a class B traffic infraction generally, see � 42-4-1701 (3)(a)(I); for the penalty and surcharge for equipment violations of subsections (1) to (10), see � 42-4-1701 (4)(a)(I)(D).
42-4-222. Volunteer firefighters - volunteer ambulance attendants - special lights and alarm systems. (1) (a) All members of volunteer fire departments regularly attached to the fire departments organized within incorporated towns, counties, cities, and fire protection districts and all members of a volunteer ambulance service regularly attached to a volunteer ambulance service within an area that the ambulance service would be reasonably expected to serve may have their private automobiles equipped with a signal lamp or a combination of signal lamps capable of displaying flashing, oscillating, or rotating red lights visible to the front and rear at five hundred feet in normal sunlight. In addition to the red light, flashing, oscillating, or rotating signal lights may be used that emit white or white in combination with red lights. At least one of such signal lamps or combination of signal lamps shall be mounted on the top of the automobile. Said automobiles may be equipped with audible signal systems such as sirens, whistles, or bells. Said lights, together with any signal systems authorized by this subsection (1), may be used only as authorized by subsection (3) of this section or when a member of a fire department is responding to or attending a fire alarm or other emergency or when a member of an ambulance service is responding to an emergency requiring the member's services. Except as authorized in subsection (3) of this section, neither such lights nor such signals shall be used for any other purpose than those set forth in this subsection (1). If used for any other purpose, such use shall constitute a violation of this subsection (1), and the violator commits a class B traffic infraction.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of this subsection (1), a member of a volunteer fire department or a volunteer ambulance service may equip his or her private automobile with the equipment described in paragraph (a) of this subsection (1) only after receiving a permit for the equipment from the fire chief of the fire department or chief executive officer of the ambulance service through which the volunteer serves.
(2) (Deleted by amendment, L. 96, p. 957, � 3, effective July 1, 1996.)
(3) A fire engine collector or member of a fire department may use the signal system authorized by subsection (1) of this section in a funeral, parade, or for other special purposes if the circumstances would not lead a reasonable person to believe that such vehicle is responding to an actual emergency.
Source: L. 94: Entire title amended with relocations, p. 2257, � 1, effective January 1, 1995. L. 96: (1) and (2) amended, p. 957, � 3, effective July 1. L. 2004: (1) amended, p. 1081, � 5, effective July 1. L. 2005: (1)(a) amended and (3) added, p. 195, � 2, effective July 1.