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Dozens of New Yorkers fed up with reckless e-vehicle riders gathered outdoors Metropolis Corridor on Wednesday, demanding licenses for mopeds and e-bikes in NYC.
Queens Metropolis Council Member Robert Holden spotlighted his 2023 invoice, Priscilla’s Regulation, named after Priscilla Loke, who died after being struck by an e-bike in Manhattan’s Chinatown whereas on her solution to work final 12 months.
The laws would require the town’s Division of Transportation (DOT) to register and license all e-mobility units not regulated by the state Division of Motor Automobiles (DMV).
To Holden, the invoice is about accountability. If it passes, the legislation would make e-vehicle riders extra accountable when collisions happen.
A ‘long overdue’ invoice
Right here’s how the legislation would work: When drivers register with the NYC DOT, their e-vehicle receives an figuring out quantity to show on a visual plate affixed to the e-bike, moped or comparable system. This, Holden defined, would permit better accountability in instances of site visitors violations, accidents or illegal exercise.
“This bill is long overdue,” the council member mentioned. “Other cities around the world have done this. Some cities even ban e-bikes from their downtown areas because they know the danger. And to get them to stop, you need accountability.”
Holden, who later testified earlier than the Metropolis Council’s Transportation Committee in assist of the invoice, mentioned e-vehicles make navigating the streets and sidewalks of NYC a harmful problem.
“I always say that the most dangerous place to be in NYC is a crosswalk because you don’t know what’s coming at you,” he mentioned. “You don’t know which direction. You have to have eyes in the back of your head.”
Many elected officers and highway security advocates say the affect of e-bikes has outpaced present state and metropolis laws. In truth, e-bikes trigger 19 occasions extra deaths per car than common bicycles, in keeping with a 15-page report by Manhattan Meeting Member Alex Bores final 12 months—although, as anticipated, the report notes that vehicles are the riskiest on a per-vehicle foundation.
Janet Schroeder, co-founder of the NYC E-Automobile Security Alliance (EVSA), helps the proposed legislation. She mentioned her group will not be in opposition to e-vehicles, however desires extra rider accountability.
“We are pro-safety for all,” she mentioned. “We are an unpaid and unfunded group of volunteers that represent the majority voice in our city. Our only agenda is safety for all New Yorkers. Priscilla’s Law, requiring visible license plates on e-vehicles will create accountability for riders, because consequence is what shapes behavior. This legislation will save lives and mitigate injuries for pedestrians, cyclists and e-bikers.”
Janet Schroeder, co-founder of the NYC E-Automobile Security Alliance, holds a photograph of a sufferer damage by an e-vehicle.Picture by Barbara Russo-Lennon
Andrew Positive, a member of the alliance, mentioned he has been combating alongside others to get the invoice handed for over a 12 months. To this point, a majority of the town council has co-sponsored it, he added.
“It’s vital to create accountability for e-bikes, which are running wild on our streets, injuring, maiming and hurting people on a minute-to-minute basis,” Positive mentioned.
Different New Yorkers expressed frustration on the lack of enforcement of reckless e-vehicle riders, whereas some see the battery-powered e-mobility units as a handy solution to get across the metropolis.
“I think they need to be registered with insurance,” New Yorker Derek James mentioned. “I see them up and down the roads not obeying traffic laws at all and have almost caused many accidents for me. I’d love to see them gone.”
James can also be involved about one other hazard — specificallly, the fireplace threat posed by defective lithium-ion batteries that give the autos their energy.
“Not to mention the fires, lack of regulation on the companies who distribute them and how many homes are lost. I’m sure it’s causing home insurance price hikes,” he mentioned.
Issues in regards to the invoice
Nonetheless, New Yorker Amber Rose, with a barely totally different viewpoint, mentioned not each e-vehicle rider is reckless or breaks the legislation.
“A lot of people use these vehicles to commute to work and such,” she mentioned. “Yes, there are people that abuse them, but those people that abuse them should pay the consequences of not having respect for the road. I can say that this is a reliable way of transport better than paying for car insurance and gas. Again there are good and bad drivers in all stages of transportation.”
Andrew Rigie, govt director of the NYC Hospitality Alliance, a nonprofit representing hundreds of eating places throughout the town, expressed issues in regards to the invoice to the town council on Wednesday.
Eating places that make use of their very own supply workers, fairly than a third-party firm like Uber Eats, already need to abide by present mandates in place that assist determine every bike, he defined.
“For example, current regulations require restaurants to assign delivery cyclists a unique three-digit ID number, which must be displayed on retro-reflective upper-body apparel that includes the business name,” Rigie mentioned. “Also, each bicycle used for deliveries must have a unique ID number—distinct from the cyclist’s ID number—clearly affixed to the rear of the bicycle, the bicycle seat, or both sides of the delivery basket.”
He added that it’s unclear how introducing one other mandate would assist with road security.
“What is certain, however, is that it will impose additional financial and administrative burdens on small businesses, requiring them to file more paperwork and pay fees to register their e-bikes,” he mentioned.
In the meantime, many New Yorkers see the Huge Apple because the Wild West due to too many reckless e-vehicle riders and never sufficient oversight or regulation.
Ellen Cavanaugh Benson, who works in Brooklyn, is bored with near-miss encounters with e-bikes on when she is on a sidewalk.
“I work in a highly populated area of Brooklyn and have nearly been knocked over after simply turning a corner while walking to my car,” she mentioned. “The drivers are careless and reckless.”
