E-bikes under fire as fatalities climb in NYC

[Elkman]

As the heading mentions, throttle-operated E-bikes and reckless E-bike riders will ruin it for everyone else. This news article popped up on my news feed.

E-bikes under fire as accidents, fatalities climb in NYC

As stage and screen actress Lisa Banes clings to life, a growing chorus of New Yorkers is clamoring for a ban on e-bikes and scooters in bike lanes and public spaces. The clarion call comes as e-bi…

nypost.com

Without proper riding infrastructure within the cities, both the rider and the general public are always at risk.
As more and more cases pile up, the hammer will drop and this will affect the responsible riders in a negative way.

Grandstanding by the local officials. When someone walks into a bike lane it is hardly the fault of the cyclist any more than if the person had stepped out in front of a car. Twenty pedestrians involved in collisions with bicyclists. Contrast that with the first 3 months of 2021 in New York City there were car accidents that injured 1,393 pedestrians and 695 bicyclists. In the first 3 months of 2021 in NYC motorists killed 22 pedestrians and a cyclist. Where do you think the problem lies?

 

[ActionJackson]

Grandstanding by the local officials. When someone walks into a bike lane it is hardly the fault of the cyclist any more than if the person had stepped out in front of a car. Twenty pedestrians involved in collisions with bicyclists. Contrast that with the first 3 months of 2021 in New York City there were car accidents that injured 1,393 pedestrians and 695 bicyclists. In the first 3 months of 2021 in NYC motorists killed 22 pedestrians and a cyclist. Where do you think the problem lies?

Well, using your logic if a pedestrian or bicyclist gets killed in a roadway, not a crosswalk or a bike way (most cases), it’s his own fault. So what’s your point?

 

[Kayakguy]

It is easy to imagine a heist with the getaway being eBikes. The stunt thieves could easily disperse and blend during rush hour. So who could catch them?

Parkour on a bike. I've seen several such videos, including in an urban setting. What a great element that would be in an "action" movie, with chase scenes and the like. I wonder why no movie maker has picked up on this idea?

 

[PedalUma]

Yeah; What is Fast and Furious VXI going to do in rush hour traffic? Cars are stuck. Downtown I can blow past all the cars, including the ones that have 500 Hp.
I made this red one a 750W today with white wires and dropped off a case of beer in the front basket to the local bike shop. It was much faster than a car in traffic.

 

[Asher]

Well, using your logic if a pedestrian or bicyclist gets killed in a roadway, not a crosswalk or a bike way (most cases), it’s his own fault. So what’s your point?

That's a bit extreme.

I lived on a residential street once with a major bike thoroughfare. When I'd get dropped off by a cab or other driver, they were surprised at the volume of bike traffic but no one who lived there was.

Sometimes people are just oblivious and enter bike lanes without due regard. But NYC has an apalling record of crowded sidewalks next to plenty of space for parked and moving cars. So people sometimes walk in the bike lane. The correct instinct is to blame the city for sandwiching people so close together while leaving so much room for cars that are incredibly inefficient in their use of space (and many of them are just cabbies idling).

New York’s Sidewalks Are So Packed, Pedestrians Are Taking to the Streets (Published 2016)

A world-class walking city has turned into an obstacle course, and transportation officials are moving to ease the congestion.

www.google.com

 

[ActionJackson]

Parkour on a bike. I've seen several such videos, including in an urban setting. What a great element that would be in an "action" movie, with chase scenes and the like. I wonder why no movie maker has picked up on this idea?

It’s okay perhaps in that isolated area. In urban settings it’s destructive and dangerous. Locals here learned that strategically placed pachinko balls (like a quarter inch ball bearing), dabs of cooking oil, and rubber bands on railings, seem to minimize the hoons from practicing wayward parkour, skateboards, and BMX in the park and elsewhere.

 

[ActionJackson]

That's a bit extreme.

I lived on a residential street once with a major bike thoroughfare. When I'd get dropped off by a cab or other driver, they were surprised at the volume of bike traffic but no one who lived there was.

Sometimes people are just oblivious and enter bike lanes without due regard. But NYC has an apalling record of crowded sidewalks next to plenty of space for parked and moving cars. So people sometimes walk in the bike lane. The correct instinct is to blame the city for sandwiching people so close together while leaving so much room for cars that are incredibly inefficient in their use of space (and many of them are just cabbies idling).

New York’s Sidewalks Are So Packed, Pedestrians Are Taking to the Streets (Published 2016)

A world-class walking city has turned into an obstacle course, and transportation officials are moving to ease the congestion.

www.google.com

I am agreeing with you actually. The guy above I replied to basically says that it’s the pedestrians fault. The weight of the law here in Japan places responsibility on the driver of the larger vehicle, whether that be an automobile, a motorcycle, bicycle, scooter or whatever. There is no fault for pedestrians. The theory being you should be in control of your vehicle enough to safely manage any situation. I agree with that.

 

[Asher]

I am agreeing with you actually. The guy above I replied to basically says that it’s the pedestrians fault. The weight of the law here in Japan places responsibility on the driver of the larger vehicle, whether that be an automobile, a motorcycle, bicycle, scooter or whatever. There is no fault for pedestrians. The theory being you should be in control of your vehicle enough to safely manage any situation. I agree with that.

That is a great rule - it forces the people with the most capacity to do harm to behave responsibly.

In America and elsewhere, we have a moralistic approach where if you can convince everyone else it was the other guys fault, you don't get punished, which isn't too hard when a) the other guy is dead and b) the other guy wasn't driving and therefore garners less sympathy than you the driver. 'i wouldn't want to get in trouble if I hit someone with my car, so I don't want this guy to get punished for doing it.'

 

[Elkman]

Point is that 1 person was seriously injured by someone on an e-bike while the city ignores the more than 5,000 pedestrians hit by motorists in their cars and trucks. Cars are considered essential and all bicyclists are treated like pleasure riders who should on ride in parks. More than 50% of the land of US cities is dedicated to motorists at enormous cost to the health of the environment and the people in the cities. Asthma costs taxpayers more than $12 billion each year in emergency room visits alone and this is the result of pollution from motor vehicles for the most part. Taxpayers subsidize the use of public streets for parking by motorists and this is nearly always at the expense of safe bike lanees. All bicyclists need to impose regulations that discourage people from using alternatives to motor vehicles for getting around our cities.

 

[PedalUma]

Point is that 1 person was seriously injured by someone on an e-bike while the city ignores the more than 5,000 pedestrians hit by motorists in their cars and trucks. Cars are considered essential and all bicyclists are treated like pleasure riders who should on ride in parks. More than 50% of the land of US cities is dedicated to motorists at enormous cost to the health of the environment and the people in the cities. Asthma costs taxpayers more than $12 billion each year in emergency room visits alone and this is the result of pollution from motor vehicles for the most part. Taxpayers subsidize the use of public streets for parking by motorists and this is nearly always at the expense of safe bike lanees. All bicyclists need to impose regulations that discourage people from using alternatives to motor vehicles for getting around our cities.

 

[ActionJackson]

Point is that 1 person was seriously injured by someone on an e-bike while the city ignores the more than 5,000 pedestrians hit by motorists in their cars and trucks. Cars are considered essential and all bicyclists are treated like pleasure riders who should on ride in parks. More than 50% of the land of US cities is dedicated to motorists at enormous cost to the health of the environment and the people in the cities. Asthma costs taxpayers more than $12 billion each year in emergency room visits alone and this is the result of pollution from motor vehicles for the most part. Taxpayers subsidize the use of public streets for parking by motorists and this is nearly always at the expense of safe bike lanees. All bicyclists need to impose regulations that discourage people from using alternatives to motor vehicles for getting around our cities.

Sounds like they need to impose a good vehicle tax on residential car owners. Maybe $5k per year would work. Thin down the number of cars. Make city car ownership a luxury for the working class. Ban street parking. Not to mention regulate bicycle delivery drivers with licenses and insurance requirements.

 

[J.R.]

Sounds like they need to impose a good vehicle tax on residential car owners. Maybe $5k per year would work. Thin down the number of cars. Make city car ownership a luxury for the working class. Ban street parking. Not to mention regulate bicycle delivery drivers with licenses and insurance requirements.

Taxes on transportation only hurt the working poor and lower class. Hedge fund managers on wall street won't care. It will be the price of doing business. You could do a UK style of congestion charge. Little economy cars, small hybrid cars and electric cars pay the least, if anything. Large luxury cars and SUV's pay the most.

Gas tax and flat taxes hurt the people who can least afford it. What will the upper classes do without the army of service workers that keep cities functioning?

 

[ActionJackson]

army of service workers that keep cities functioning

Public transportation

 

[PedalUma]

Sounds like they need to impose a good vehicle tax on residential car owners. Maybe $5k per year would work. Thin down the number of cars. Make city car ownership a luxury for the working class. Ban street parking. Not to mention regulate bicycle delivery drivers with licenses and insurance requirements.

In California land for Housing costs money for the land, but Parking is largely 'free' with eight spaces for every one car. People do pay for this 'free' parking, it is just not by the drivers of cars. This is a very good video.

In wealthy areas the service worker all commute by car. They do not live there. Look for example at Beverly Hills or Tiburon, CA.

 

[Mr. Coffee]

Public transportation

Great, you solved in in New York. Solve it in Denver or Phoenix.

 

[Asher]

Great, you solved in in New York. Solve it in Denver or Phoenix.

Lol the dude was talking about New York.

 

[Asher]

Taxes on transportation only hurt the working poor and lower class. Hedge fund managers on wall street won't care. It will be the price of doing business. You could do a UK style of congestion charge. Little economy cars, small hybrid cars and electric cars pay the least, if anything. Large luxury cars and SUV's pay the most.

Gas tax and flat taxes hurt the people who can least afford it. What will the upper classes do without the army of service workers that keep cities functioning?

There isn't enough room in NYC to have a healthy functioning city and even a modest fraction of people driving to work. If you charge a ton (because that's what the space is worth, and that's what it takes to whittle down the driving population), it gathers a lot of money that can make life better for everyone, especially the poor. Traffic jams don't help anyone.

That said, NYC city government is notoriously inept and wasteful. The richest city in the world and it still looks like a shithole (scaffolding, garbage, subway stations...)

 

[Mr. Coffee]

That said, NYC city government is notoriously inept and wasteful.

Yes, and I hear that Antarctica is chilly and you should bring a sweater when you visit.

 

[ActionJackson]

In California land for Housing costs money for the land, but Parking is largely 'free' with eight spaces for every one car. People do pay for this 'free' parking, it is just not by the drivers of cars. This is a very good video.

In wealthy areas the service worker all commute by car. They do not live there. Look for example at Beverly Hills or Tiburon, CA.
View attachment 95149

Crazy. I can’t complain about parking though, I’m renting out my second spot for $10K/yr. , helped pay for the bike I guess.

 

[J.R.]

Public transportation

Let them eat cake.

Public transportation doesn't solve everything for everyone. I have friends in NYC and I hear first hand how commuters are abused on subways. People shoved onto tracks at stations. Men urinating inside the cars. Homeless sleeping in stations and stairwells and cars. Many women these days won't chance taking the subway. There are fewer cops policing the subways than ever before. Easy enough to find the stories.