Monday: Rally With Delivery Workers for Sensible E-Bike Policies From City Hall
The city's proposed rule changes legalizing pedal-assist electric bikes on city streets won't protect delivery workers from fines and seizures.
Mayor de Blasio’s police crackdown on electric bike delivery workers is in its fifth month, and City Hall shows no signs of discontinuing its policy of wringing tickets out of that segment of the city’s immigrant workforce.
DOT is weighing changes to city rules that would legalize pedal-assist e-bikes. But most delivery cyclists use “combination bikes,” which can be operated by pedal-assist or throttle, with the same top speed. Even with the adjustments the de Blasio administration is considering — which were developed without input from working cyclists — e-bike delivery workers will continue to be punished for doing their jobs.
On Monday, workers will rally outside City Hall to demand Mayor de Blasio enact sensible e-bike policies. The rally is organized by the Justice Delivered Coalition, which consists of the Asian American Federation, Make the Road, Transportation Alternatives, and the Biking Public Project. The groups are calling on the city to end the e-bike crackdown and provide funding and assistance for delivery workers to convert their bikes to pedal-assist.
De Blasio’s crackdown has saddled workers with thousands of dollars in fines and lost wages. The city has never provided data demonstrating that e-bike riders post a serious public safety threat.
Monday’s rally starts at 10 a.m. on the City Hall steps. If you can’t make it, the city is accepting comments on the proposed rule changes online.
