# of e-bike collisions in SI?

[Justin Wood]

Hi all - I'd like to submit testimony urging CM Hanks to withdraw her support from Intro 606, the dangerous e-bike licensing bill that had a hearing at City Council.

Has anyone seen data on how many recorded e-bike collisions have occured on SI this year?  My guess is it's very very few if any, and that there is no reason for Hanks to be supporting this bill on safety grounds.

Thanks!

Justin

[Justin Wood]

Good idea - anyone have Jesse's info?

On Thursday, December 12, 2024 at 01:00:11 PM EST, Janos Marton <janosd...@gmail.com> wrote:

I don't...might Jessie Singer know?

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Janos Marton

t. @janosmarton

p. 917.848.6915

[Justin Wood]

I think I found relevant data - the DOT's 2023 bicycle crash data shows very very few bicyclist-pedestrian crashes on all of SI (three total reported) and no fatalities.   In contrast, there were 391 pedestrian injuries total (including motor vehicles) and 4 fatalities.   Clearly, e-bikes are simply not a problem here compared to motor vehicles.

 

https://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/downloads/pdf/bicycle-crash-data-report-2023.pdf

On Thursday, December 12, 2024 at 03:54:45 PM EST, Janos Marton <janosd...@gmail.com> wrote:

No, but can DM her on Twitter if you two don't follow each other

[Rose Uscianowski]

Did a quick search. Feel free to take what info you find most pertinent. Data is  from crashmapper.org, which compiles its data directly from NYPD crash stats

For all of Staten Island

• There were 3,608 total crashes between Nov 2023- Nov 2024
• 40 involved an e-bike or e-scooter
• None of these crashes resulted in a fatality 
• 13 of those crashes resulted in injury
• Out of those injuries, 6 were sustained by the e-bike riders themselves
• Just 4 pedestrians were injured in crashes with e-bikes or e-scooters
  

For CD 49-

• There were 1,226 total crashes within the same time period
• 27 involved an e-bike or e-scooter
• None resulted in a fatality 
• 7 of those crashes resulted in injury
• 2 were sustained by the e-bike riders themselves
• 4 pedestrians were injured in crashes with e-bikes or e-scooters

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[Rose Uscianowski]

Here are some other talking points 

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Rose Uscianowski (she/her/they/theirs)

Staten Island and South Brooklyn Organizer

Transportation Alternatives

C: (347) 213-1340

@TransAlt | TransAlt.org

Our mission is to reclaim New York City’s streets from the automobile and advocate for better walking, biking, and public transit for all New Yorkers. Donate or become a member today!

[Rose Uscianowski]

Oh, and one last thing of note- after yesterday's hearing, Chi Osse and Yusef Salaam 🎉 removed themselves as co-sponsors- woot woot!

[ROY FISCHMAN]

Thanks for following up on this Rose

https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/TAStatenIsland/CABXm1zSsB-YJMyE1iAoQ96YNj4H-2Vqj2%2BFu-FSPkPzAviBUPA%40mail.gmail.com

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[Rose Uscianowski]

Of course! Are you planning to submit testimony as well? I'd be happy to help if needed 

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[ROY FISCHMAN]

When is that?

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[virg...@aol.com]

Don't understand.  Why is this bill considered dangerous? 

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[C MathLady]

Personally, I'm in favor of the regulation. 

 I think all electrically powered vehicles should be required to be registered , insured and inspected just like other vehicles with motors.  They also should not be allowed in bike lanes since they travel at higher speeds than manually powered bikes.  

The drivers  often drive dangerously, using their cell phones taking multiple orders while driving.  This is not allowed while driving but they get away with it because there's no enforcement.

I was riding in the bike lane on a Manhattan street last year and  an ebike delivery driver came up behind me and knocked me down.  He did not stop to see if I was okay; he just continued at a speed in excess of 30 mph.

Many drive right onto the sidewalk as well.    I really don't care if "they are immigrants trying to make a living".

There should be no exceptions.

Chris Coppa

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www.multipure.com/coppa

[Rose Uscianowski]

Chris,

I'm sorry to hear that you were hit! I hope it is nothing serious and you're fully recovered! 

I do want to correct some potential confusion, though. It sounds like you may have been hit by a moped. Electric bikes (or at least legal ones) don't travel above 25 mph. Only mopeds do. If the vehicle was a moped, Intro 606 doesn't address them. Mopeds are already required to be licensed and registered. If it was an e-bike that hit you and it was definitely going over 30 MPH, then the vehicle was illegal to begin with. 

The idea is that 606 will help get illegal bikes off the street, but that seems doubtful. License plates don't create enforcement. Ie- Cars and trucks have been licensed and registered in NYS for over 100 years, but drivers still break the law daily. Meanwhile, hit and runs involving cars and trucks have been surging. 

You tend to be conflating e-bike users with low wage immigrants, which is misleading. While many delivery workers use e-bikes, they are far from the only users. E-bikes are used by people with mobility issues, companies who use them to replace trucks for last mile deliveries, elderly who use them to help stay active longer, low income folks without a car, and recreational riders who use them to travel further on their bikes. Laws that create impediments to e-bike usage don't only hurt them, they also deter more people from switching away from cars and trucks, which are far more dangerous than e-bikes are.

Also, not all delivery cyclists are immigrants. I've done bike delivery work as a second job when I needed the income (albeit with a non-electric bike.) From my experience doing delivery work, putting license plates on electric bikes won't change behavior. Many delivery cyclists ride recklessly because they are under huge economic pressures. The economic pressures are far more acute than fears of getting caught riding against traffic or running a red light, etc. License plates won't change that, regulating delivery app companies so that cyclists aren't constantly racing against the clock can do much more to improve safety. 

There are a ton of other reasons why Intro 606 doesn't make sense:

• Intro 606 covers more than just e-bikes. The broad language used in the bill would also cover electric scooters (which don't go over 15 mph,) skateboards, hoverboards, etc. 
• The DOT, which Intro 606 directs with carrying out the licensing program, lacks the funds and infrastructure to do so. Setting up a municipal program to license e-bikes would cost $19 million over the first four years alone, according to the OMB. 
• It's unclear how this law would impact electric Citibikes
• Other cities that have tried to license either bikes in general or e-bikes have repealed the licensing laws because they were too expensive and didn't increase safety. 

Virginia- The reason TA finds this law dangerous (as do the ACLU and many other human rights orgs we partner with in NYC) is due to another trend we've seen in other locations that have tried bike licensing of any type. They increase racialized policing. Since newer e-bikes models look very similar to regular bikes, they can be impossible to tell apart from regular bikes except under close inspection. Likewise, licensing e-bikes gives police wide discretion to pull over unlicensed cyclists for any reason. Giving police this type of discretion nearly always results in the over policing of black and brown New Yorkers. For undocumented riders, any interaction with the cops comes with the risk of deportation. That risk will only be magnified under Trump. 
 

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