E-bikes are a game-changer for the people who need them most The mayor of one of the best biking cities in the U.S. is not a fan of electric bikes.
?We have a safety issue that is quite clear to me,? said New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio at a press conference this week. ?I?ve heard it from so many people in the city around the bikes that go very fast.?
To de Blasio, e-bikes represent ?a real danger,? and his administration has been cracking down on a particular type known as throttle-powered, which allows a bike to move without pedaling. The crackdown unfairly targets a mode of transportation the city?s delivery workers rely upon?while the city?s bike-share system rolled out its own electric pedal-assist bikes and its Department of Transportation launched a pilot program with dockless e-bikes. Now New York?s City Council is hoping to change all this. The city?s legislators recently introduced a bill to legalize all electric bikes, as well as electric scooters, on New York streets. In addition to allowing the pedal-assist bikes offered by bike share companies, New York City would legalize throttle-powered bikes, and e-scooters, like Bird and Lime, which are also throttle-propelled.
But de Blasio is already naysaying the pending legislation. ?I am seeing too many problems with e-bikes already,? he said at the press conference. ?If we can?t become convinced that it?s safe, we can?t support it.?
I was thinking about de Blasio?s safety concerns as I rode around Los Ange...