E-Bike Dangers Trigger Flurry of New State Laws; Bores and Hoylman-Sigal Play Big Roles

A sweeping new set of rules governing lithium-ion batteries and e-bikes, including the first ever requirement to register mopeds with NYS at point of sale, was signed into law by Gov. Kathy Hochul on July 11.

It follows a year that saw 18 deaths tied to faulty lithium-ion batteries in NYC last year, a surge in violent collisions with e-bikes, Mayor Adams’ citywide crackdown and 42,000 NYPD-confiscated illegal electric vehicles.

“As e-bike adoption increases and battery technology continues to develop, I urge New Yorkers to be aware of safety,” Hochul said. “These laws underscore our commitment to help New Yorkers make educated, safe, smart choices with their purchases of products.”

Local leaders played leading roles in getting key parts passed. Two of the bills were introduced by UES Assembly member Alex Bores, who was asked by the governor to be among the speakers at the bill signing ceremony. Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal, who represents Chelsea and parts of Hells Kitchen and Greenwich Village was the main sponsor in the Senate’s bill on moped registration

“With this new law in effect, more registered mopeds will mean greater enforcement of our traffic laws and safer streets,” said Holyman-Sigal.

Last year, Bores’ office released a report examining every e-bike and moped fire and every vehicle collision in New York City and reported that e-bikes were 28 times more likely to cause a death than a normal bicycle.

“There are far too many unlicensed mopeds on our streets, and even worse, on our sidewalks,” said Hoylman-Sigal.

The bills which are now law, requires accident reports to specify when e-bikes and e-scooters are involved by modifying state accident reports and allows for the collection of valuable data. Additionally, Assembly bill A8450 which is also now law, addresses the plague of unregistered mopeds across New York. While mopeds must be registered with the Department of Motor Vehicles and require a driver’s license to operate, a loophole unitl now allowed these vehicles, to not to be registered at the point of sale, resulting in very few registrations and a flood of illegal mopeds on the streets of the city. This bill closes that loophole.

“This package of common-sense bills will keep New Yorkers safer from battery fires and collisions,” said Bores. “By requiring the registration of mopeds at point of sale and the collection of e-bike collision data, we are making our streets safer and increasing accountability.”

Many of the new regulations stop short of far stiffer penalties for sale of faulty material that some advocates seek. Instead, it requires micro-mobility devices to have red tags on charging cords urging users to unplug them when not in use. It also requires training materials for first responders for incidents involving lithium-ion batteries.

Present at the bill signing, taking his first major steps outside of his apartment, was Rabbi Michael Miller, who had his right leg broken by a hit and run e-biker in early June. Miller, a retired NYPD chaplain who spent upwards of 30 years with the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, had called for a crackdown after his injury. Mayor Eric Adams had called the rogue e-bikers a “menance to our city.”

An e-bike, whose rogue driver was going the wrong way down a one-way street collided with Miller and left him writhing on the ground while the e-biker sped away without stopping. The rabbi eventually needed a titanium rod to be inserted into his leg as he struggled to learn to walk again.

“As a victim of a reckless e-bike rider, the signing of legislation today is an initial step in regulating this very popular, but hazardous form of transportation,” he said. “[The legislation] is a very meaningful indication that we’re heading in the right direction.”

Among the flurry of bills, was a state bill that prohibits the sale of lithium-ion batteries that are not approved by Underwriters Laboratory. That mirrors a city law that is already on the books. Last year there were eight deaths in Manhattan, including one blaze in Chinatown that killed four, among the 18 citywide deaths from fires started by faulty lithium-ion batteries.

In February this year, 27-year old Fazil Kahn a young journalist who came from India and graduated from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, was killed in an inferno in a Washington Heights apartment building. Fire marshals said a faulty lithium-ion battery used by delivery people who lived on another floor in his building exploded, igniting the blaze. The fire was so intense that firefighters had to use a rare rope roof rescue to bring three other residents who were trapped on a floor above the flames down the outside of the building to safety.

Miller said Hochul was asked how many of these incidents there were years ago. Hochul dramatically replied, “Zero!” indicating the surging use of e-bikes, e-scooters and mopeds in recent years. Their use increase dramatically during the pandemic when many home-bound residents called on deliveristas to deliver takeout food to their door. The vehicles have continued to grow in popularity even as COVID eased.

Miller acknowledged that vehicles can, at times, be “very beneficial” because they provide easy access to food delivery but he pointed out they can also cause a lot of harm to the city and the country. Miller said he’s spoken to several members of Congress to discuss the crisis at the national level.

“It’s the world we live in, that we want everything as fast as possible,” he said. “This is not just a municipal and state issue. It’s a national issue.”

Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright, who visited Miller in the hospital, has also been a major voice behind the growing e-bike problem—her name was listed today as a co-sponsor of the legislation. Seawright represents Miller’s Upper East Side neighborhood, and she said her own daughter had been hit by a bicycle outside her local high school.

“Careless e-vehicle usage pose[s] deadly threats to our communities,” she said. “No one should fear navigating their own neighborhoods.”

Hochul hopes this will help bring attention to what’s happening in Manhattan, sticking to her number-one priority she promised as governor: to keep New York safe.

“I’m very hopeful for pedestrians here in New York,” Miller said. “There is hope that the government will get its arm around [e-vehicles] to ensure and enhance our quality of life.”