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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Jeffrey Thomas on E-bike Regulation
3:37:29
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135 sec
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Jeffrey Thomas, a Brooklyn resident, testified against Intro 606, which would require licensing for e-bikes. He argued that the proposed legislation would be difficult to enforce and unnecessary for many e-bike users like himself who use pedal-assist bikes for health reasons.
- Thomas pointed out that existing laws already regulate faster e-bikes and motorcycles.
- He emphasized that the DOT is already working on safety improvements and shouldn't be burdened with a new licensing program.
- Thomas urged the council to focus on proven safety measures rather than introducing new regulations.
Jeffrey Thomas
3:37:29
Hi.
3:37:30
Good afternoon.
3:37:30
My name is Jeffrey Thomas.
3:37:32
I live in Brooklyn.
3:37:32
I'd like to tell you about the bicycle I ride to get to work.
3:37:36
I have an electric version of a model that has been made for 50 years.
3:37:39
It doesn't weigh 60 to £70, it weighs maybe half of that.
3:37:43
Up to 18 miles an hour, it provides a little boost when I pedal.
3:37:46
Any faster, the motor turns off.
3:37:49
I have asthma, and the assist helps me stay active without getting out of breath.
3:37:53
A friend of mine has the same model because she was hit by a car, and with her knee, she can't ride an unpowered bike.
3:37:58
If you look very closely at our bikes, you can see a small motor in the middle of the front wheel.
3:38:02
Other than that, our bikes look identical to the non electric version.
3:38:06
Intro 606 says that we need a license, and thousands of other bikes in the city that look just like it do not.
3:38:13
How is that going to be enforced?
3:38:15
Maybe the honor system?
3:38:16
Now I will get a license if this passes, but if, God forbid, I get in the crash, I will stick around.
3:38:21
I will provide my information.
3:38:22
I will make myself accessible as long as needed.
3:38:25
If you're relying on my honor, you don't need my license plate.
3:38:29
Or maybe every bicycle in the city without a license is gonna get pulled over just in case it has a tiny motor.
3:38:35
This is the concern people are raising with policing.
3:38:37
It's not the tickets for illegal behavior.
3:38:39
It is pulling over every cyclist, everyone in this room who cycles for legal behavior.
3:38:44
It's a massive waste.
3:38:45
Either way, a massive waste of time and resources.
3:38:48
Now you might say, we're not worried about your bike.
3:38:50
We're worried about things that look nothing like regular bikes that go 30, 40 miles an hour.
3:38:54
Those are already regulated and not just in Denmark.
3:38:56
New York State law, as a lawyer said, calls those electric motorcycles, mopeds, not bicycles.
3:39:02
You already need a license plate and registration, and the state DMV will already register those.
3:39:07
They're already not allowed in bike lanes.
3:39:09
Those laws exist.
3:39:11
If people don't know that law, if stores are selling motorcycles and calling them e bikes, which is a real problem, how will another law make things less confusing?
3:39:19
How will charging the local d o t to come up with a brand new licensing program help?
3:39:23
And speaking of the DOT, they presented my neighborhood recently about plans to add, protection.
3:39:27
The data says that the work they're doing will make things safer for everyone, including pedestrians.
3:39:32
This is an overworked, an underfunded agency with plenty of important work to do already.
3:39:37
This bill has important goals.
3:39:38
I agree with the goals.
3:39:39
We know how to achieve them.
3:39:40
They are best achieved by letting the DOT do the things we know will work.
3:39:43
So I urge you to agree.