Friday’s Headlines: Bad Lawsuit Edition

“Thousands” of self-described victims of e-bike crashes sued Mayor Mamdani on Thursday for ending the criminal crackdown on cyclists that Police Commissioner started last year under then-Mayor Eric Adams.

Tisch’s policy forced anyone caught committing low-level traffic violations on an e-bike to answer for their sins in criminal court, rather than by simply mailing in their fine as would be expected of any other scofflaw driver or cyclists caught breaking the law. Unsurprisingly, given NYPD’s lack of attention to the safety of legal or illegal micromobility devices, people riding non-electric bikes also found themselves caught in the dragnet.

The policy was just that — a policy — and Hizzoner ended it on March 27, while promising to increase rider education and pursue legislation to rein in rogue app companies that pressure e-bike delivery workers to speed for their wages.

Opponents of that decision have sued in friendly Staten Island rather than Manhattan, which should give you a sense of the strength of their argument. To wit, the suit claims Mayor Mamdani’s decision “prohibits” cops from giving criminal summonses (not true), and treats the policy as an intractable law rather than a policy.

Other highlights from the lawsuit, which was filed by perennial anti-bike lawyer and 2025 mayoral also-ran Jim Walden:

• It suggests that “the so-called ‘micromobility movement'” represents a “small percentage of New Yorkers — which it then pegs, without evidence, at an objectively substantial 10 percent.
• Council Member Frank Morano is signed on as a plaintiff in his capacity as an “avid pedestrian,” while ex-Council Member Robert Holden’s wife is in there as someone “who has experienced many near misses with e-bikes driving unsafely.”

Of course, we’re sure that regardless of how NYPD and Commissioner Tisch feel about Mamdani’s rejection of the criminal summons policy, they’re not going to want their approach to enforcement dictated by a Staten Island judge. We eagerly anticipate the city and NYPD’s response.

In the meantime, check out credulous coverage from the Post, Our Town, CBS and PIX11.

In other news:

• Transportation Alternatives is out with a list of recommendations in response to last month’s fatal head-on collision on the Queensboro Bridge bike path.
• MTA New York City Transit President Demetrius Crichlow talked about the agency’s test-run of handheld devices that let bus fare enforcement agents check if riders have paid without stopping buses. (amNY, Gothamist)
• The Rent Guidelines Board approved the rent freeze that Mayor Mamdani promised to voters on the campaign trail last year. (The City Reporter)
• Upstate bungalow communities are banning e-bikes and e-scooters. (Williamsburg 365)
• Tuesday’s elections heralded a “new era” for the Brooklyn Democratic Party after reformers won a majority of executive committee seats. (Hell Gate)
• Police reform groups want Mayor Mamdani to call off NYPD’s crackdown on low-level offenses and plans to hire more cops. (Gothamist)
• New York City’s latest political revolution was brought to you in part by the United Auto Workers. (The City Reporter)
• New subway cars are coming to the D train “in the near future.” (PIX11)