NEW YORK (BRAIN) — The City Council discussed on Wednesday a proposed law requiring all e-bikes and e-scooters to be licensed and registered with the Department of Transportation to crack down on dangerous riding in the city that led to a pedestrian's death last year.
Sponsored by Councilmember Robert Holden in March and also known as "Priscilla's Law," the bill calls for e-bikes and e-scooters to receive an identifying number that would be displayed on a license plate. Holden's bill came about after pedestrian Priscilla Loke, 69, was struck and killed by an e-bike rider in Chinatown. Holden and others have noted an increase of e-bikes on sidewalks, riding the wrong way on roads, and running red lights among other violations.
Several people spoke at the Committee on Transportation Infrastructure meeting about close calls and accidents involving e-bikes and e-scooters.
The bill is not supported by DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez, who said during the meeting he is willing to work with the city to address the problem. Holden countered that he's stood on some corners in the city and estimated 95% of the e-bike delivery workers and 95% of other e-bike riders don't follow traffic laws.
"When something is a health epidemic and a safety hazard, that should be a priority with DOT," he said.
Holden noted licensing would reduce e-bike crashes and pedestrians being struck. He said when Denmark required licensing, there were "29% fewer deaths, 39% fewer serious injuries, and 64% reduction in crashes."
According to Holden, several details still need to be completed and a vote likely is months away.
Matt Moore, PeopleForBikes policy counsel, also spoke in opposition of the bill and issued an official written comment to the committee, saying registration and licensing will not increase safety. He said the approach PeopleForBikes supports is a task force proposed in another bill sponsored by Selvena N. Brooks-Powers. That bill would "study options for making street design and infrastructure safer in consideration of increased use of electric bicycles and related collisions."
"Such a task force could, in a relatively short period of time, conduct an analysis of the root causes of crashes and make recommendations to address them," Moore wrote. "Such action could actually improve the safety of New York's streets. PeopleForBikes suggests that the council and administration continue to focus on planning, funding and implementing connected and protected bike infrastructure, which can keep pedestrians, cyclists, and automobile drivers safe simultaneously.
"By focusing on low-speed e-bikes and e-scooters, registration and licensing take time, resources and attention away from the No. 1 source of fatal and serious injury crashes in our country: large, heavy, and fast motor vehicles being operating on infrastructure that is designed for rapid travel, not the safety of pedestrians, cyclists and others."
