Pedal-Assist Commercial Bicycles

Online comments: 370

• Rafael Monroy-Rojas

  I am in support of the rule to allow more cargo bikes for deliveries in NYC. Cargo bikes are incredibly more environmentally-friendly than trucks, and they do not pose the threat to human life that a truck does. A truck simply making a wrong turn or missing a blind spot can kill a pedestrian or cyclist, whereas a cargo bike simply doesn’t have blind spots. Further, cargo bikes significantly reduce truck traffic, which has great health and environmental benefits for the people of NYC.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 9:06am

• Wadis

  Unless required to use streets, how will these extra wide boxes on wheels not be the end of useful bike lanes for actual bikes? A foot wider than existing cargo bikes for lanes already too small and choked with gas scooters and throttle e-bikes and parked vehicles? Will these double wide boxes not just be impassable moving blocks in lanes for commuters and others using actual bicycles in bike lanes. And won’t they realistically just park in the lane when delivering like all other cargo vehicles — even though rules will say they can’t, causing further hazards and inefficiencies. Bike lanes are supposed to be for bikes. How will this not just drive bicyclists off their bikes because the lanes are as clogged and dangerous as the streets? Maybe take a lane from the trucks and cars and deed it to alternative cargo vehicles like this.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 9:23am

• John

  Fully support this. Get those multiton trucks that keep killing people off the road and get more of these in there!

  Comment added August 14, 2023 9:35am

• Lynn Yellen

  Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez said “Just two cargo bikes can replace one box truck, increasing safety and reducing CO2emission by 14 tons per year—equivalent to 30,872 passenger car miles traveled.”

  In addition to the environmental advantages, DOT’s electric pedal-assist cargo bike is charming. Visualize the transformation when Fresh Direct, Amazon, and all the other companies polluting the air and crowding the streets are swapped out for cute little pedal-assist cargo bikes. I’m already there. Please make this happen!

  They should use the lanes for cars and trucks and regular loading zones, so that bike lanes are clear for cyclists.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 9:58am

• Brandon Feldman

  This is an obvious, common sense solution that will make our streets and environment safer. I’m a parent of two children under 5 and replacing large trucks with cargo bikes will make NYC a better place to raise a family. Thank you for pursuing this and I look forward to seeing fewer trucks on NYC streets.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 10:06am

• Richard Goldberg

  A necessary and welcome support for this would be to re-mark streets and avenues with lanes for all electro/pedal vehicles.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 10:14am

• Richard Goldberg

  A necessary and welcome support for this development would be to re-line our streets and avenues with lanes specifically for all pedal/electro vehicles. This would make traveling by pedal bicycle safer and would use space vacated by the reduced number of trucks.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 10:17am

• Shane Sauder

  This is a great start. We need to reduce truck and car use in this city and this is a great first step. Cargo bikes can make a lot of deliveries more quickly and easily than a van or truck. They also are much safer and more pleasant for the pedestrians of this city.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 10:24am

• David Tenenbaum

  Hi,

  I am a NYC resident and cyclist and I want to voice my strong support for cargo e-bikes! Trucks are incredibly dangerous, both for the environment, and for the bodies of pedestrians that they often plow into and kill. Anything we can do to reduce the carnage on NYC streets is good.

  I would add we should allow these cargo ebikes to use the road, as we don’t want to have them taking up all of a bike lane in case other bikes need to pass, but in theory having fewer trucks would make passing less hazardous (and also, less trucks parked in the bike lane is also good)

  Comment added August 14, 2023 10:36am

• Joseph Colao

  We should absolutely be encouraging pedal-assist commercial bikes. These vehicles keep road-clogging, smog-producing, pedestrian-endangering trucks off the street and provide for a much more sensible approach to deliveries. Strongly in favor!

  Comment added August 14, 2023 12:02pm

• Alexis G.

  I support allowing pedal assist cargo e-bikes in NYC! The environmental benefit is clear, and gives local businesses an option for delivery that’s more affordable than big box vans and trucks, while allowing more items to sent in one delivery than a standard bike. I live on a one-way street that regularly experiences honking and yelling from angry drivers whenever a delivery truck double parks for dropoff, blocking traffic. The size of these bikes would allow for a lot less stress for the workers since fewer people will be yelling at them.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 12:11pm

• Bin Rad

  Please pass this rule to increase the number of cargo bikes and reduce the number of trucks on our road. This will make our city safer, quieter, and a better place to live.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 12:19pm

• Jeremiah Blatz

  I support this change to allow the user of wider, pedal-assisted cargo bikes. Having these cargo bikes on the street will make deliveries, safer, less polluting, and result in less overall traffic.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 12:23pm

• Campbell Munn

  I’m writing in strong support of the DOT rules amendment in question. Delivery trucks, particularly box trucks, are some of the most consistently dangerous road users in New York City. Furthermore, they are responsible for prolific greenhouse gas and particulate emissions each year, something the City does not need to subject itself to when clear alternatives exist. Allowing for four-wheeled, 48-inch wide cargo bikes will dramatically improve the types of cargo bikes legal for use in New York City and in-turn, allow for a far more dramatic mode shift on our streets. With this rule, we can make our streets safer and our City cleaner. I strongly urge you to support and pass this rules amendment.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 3:47pm

• Christopher Terrell

  We have operated a cargo bike delivery service in NYC for wine for over 10 years.

  We have been limited by the size of vehicle due to insurance and other requirements.

  This proposal is a no brainer.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 3:55pm

• JSM

  I’m in favor of these pedal-assist commercial bikes to reduce carbon emissions. But PLEASE DO NOT ALLOW THEM IN BIKE LANES, which are narrow and already crowded and where we’re seeing all kinds of motorized scooters and even motorcycles take over, threatening the safety of people using regular bikes and non-motorized scooters. These pedal-assist commercial bikes belong in traffic lanes, not in bike lanes. They are large and bulky enough to hold their own in traffic. Or maybe we can take away a traffic lane from cars and trucks and devote it to pedal-assist commercial bikes.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 4:22pm

• Jac

  This is a great idea for commercial areas. As a Bronx resident, I would caution not to allow them on the recreational bike paths. The law that prohibits motorized vehicles on them is not enforced as it is.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 5:07pm

• Joyce Hansen

  Who is going to ensure that the commercial Pedal assist bicycles are not in the bike lane or on the Hudson River by claim. At present no one enforces the rules. When I complain about it police officer, say that motorcycles on a bike path, or a quality of life offense, and they don’t enforce those. Motorcycles, not motorbikes, motorcycles go up the Hudson River bike path and sidewalks all the time.
  It is dangerous who is going to make sure the cargo bicycles stay on the road and not on the bike paths or sidewalks.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 5:53pm

• Cody Lyon

  Pedal Assist Commercial bikes—the wider ones—should be encouraged on NYC streets. Delivery trucks and vans are a menace to pedestrians, they disrupt our street space and add to the city’s carbon footprint. However, and I say this as a daily bicycling commuter….if these cargo bikes are going to utilize our existing bike lane network, the lanes themselves need to be much wider. The city’s existing bike lanes are far too narrow.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 7:29pm

• Jane H

  This is a horrible idea. We already have a horrendous issue with e bikes and Motorcycle mopeds ( not green AT ALL by the way- nobody riding an E-BIKE now was driving a car) and 150 fires/13 deaths and 76 serious injuries from battery fires speak for themselves. These e bikes and mopeds are not registered, licensed, insured. They follow almost NO laws whatsoever! There are so victims of e vehicle crashes. The DOT’s stats on e vehicle crashes are completely skewed. There isn’t even a box for e vehicle crashes on police report- they often show up as “motor vehicle” crash. WE are the majority, will not stand for this! WE should get to vote. Make things BALLOT INITIATIVES. Stop deciding everything FOR us……Department of Transportation Alternatives. You can’t force this on us!!

  Comment added August 14, 2023 8:32pm

• Susan James

  I see all the TRANS ALT comments on here that speak for the agenda of this corrupt lobbying group, falsely operating as a 501c3 that cares NOTHING about SAFETY unless it is safety from cars. 100% hypocritical. Why is that? Well.. follow the money. Look up Mark Gorton and his interests. Then look at the connection to Uber and Lyft. Stop trying to widen bike lanes to force congestion. Stop paying off politicians. Stop being ABLEIST and AGEIST.
  Rodriguez is a corrupt mobster thug and everyone knows it. Get him out!

  NO MORE MOTORIZED VEHICLES! We are far past capacity.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 8:48pm

• BrklynSandy

  The narrow vehicles are unstable. If one gets hit by a conventional vehicle the driver will suffer serious injuries. I don’t see how companies that might want to use these things will be able to get insurance coverage for them. Insurance Providers require periodic inspections by Certified Industrial Safety Consultants. They rate the various tasks drivers have regarding the potential for personnel injuries.
  These narrow vehicles are inherently vulnerable in any accident.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 9:56pm

• [email protected]

  Bikes have two wheels. Those are vans. Vans do not belong in bike lanes and require license plates.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 9:56pm

• Ellen

  Our streets and sidewalks have become disorganized mayhem — with bikes, e-bikes, mopeds, scooters, skateboards — endangering the safety of pedestrians, and now you want to add yet another type of vehicle? NO. All these people on alternative vehicles haven’t replaced cars – just look at the traffic. What it has replaced is people taking subways, buses or walking like they once did! Fix the mess that’s been created jeopardizing the safety of pedestrians, and then we’ll consider a new proposal.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 10:10pm

• Susan Simon

  I am the leader of a community organization and I would like to speak. The notion that while e-vehicles are entirely unregulated and endangering the lives of millions of New Yorkers, the DOT would promote the addition of e-cargo vehicles is the height of irresponsibility and arrogance. As a lifelong New Yorker I have rarely seen an Administration as captured by the lobby promoting chaos on our streets.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 10:44pm

• Louis Guidone

  I do not see this as anywhere near safe. The bike lanes (and sidewalks and streets) are too congested with electric scooters, gas and electric mopeds, ebikes, and even motorcycles (legitimate and not street legal dirt bikes and quads). Lanes would have to be double wide and clean of debris on a more regular basis. You can’t keep it clean and flowing safely to begin with reinforce the laws stop bending the rules for deliveries and don’t let corporations take over.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 11:04pm

• James Szypula

  I think this is a wonderful initiative that will help to make NYC streets safer. Looking forward to seeing these in operation. Thank you for leading the way on this.

  Comment added August 14, 2023 11:43pm

• FalseFlag

  We’d all love to be able to say we are contributing to reduction of GHG and air pollution, this is not going to get rid of trucks on our city streets. Nor will it make much of a dent in the overall air pollution. There’s nothing wrong, per se, with using cargo bikes for deliveries. The problem is this: they must be regulated, which means their operators must be licensed; their vehicles must be registered (maybe we need a new commercial vehicle class for them); they must be insured, which should be a cost borne by their employers; and they must be subject to all NYC traffic laws and be ticketed if in violation, same as any other vehicle.
  That said, these cargo bikes don’t belong in bike lanes; bike lanes should be reserved for bikes. And, the classification of bicycles should NOT be changed to include such vehicles. They are not standard pedal bikes. If you get hit with one that is riding even at 15 mph, the sheer weight of such a vehicle has the potential to do Very serious damage. In fact, bike lanes were designed for regular pedal bikes – not vehicles that range from motorized toys to large mopeds/e-bikes, all of which are turning our bike lanes into a circus. And while the weather now is conducive for cargo bikes, what happens when that changes?
  This is a down-and-dirty cheap solution to a problem that needs a lot more attention and involves how the city handles the advent of small motorized vehicles on our streets. While it’s cheaper for companies sending out deliveristas on a motorized vehicle so that they can deliver their goods faster and thus make more money, they are asking the rest of us to move over and let them dominate our streets (and sidewalks and parking spaces) under the guise of cleaner air. Don’t buy into this nonsense. Yes, let’s have hearings and put all ideas on the table. The first is do no harm. The e-bike craze has a lot of negatives that need to be addressed by the wider public, not just the representatives of the lobbyists for the delivery apps.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 1:50am

• Henry Gong

  I support commercial pedal assist bicycles and hope to see delivery companies using them everywhere in New York. In fact, delivery companies should push for better bicycle infrastructure to enable more deliveries with less carbon emitted and better road safety for everyone.

  However, care must be maintained so that such vehicles do not (1) block bike lanes, (2) cause congestion of bike lanes, or (3) block sidewalk usage for disabled pedestrians. All 3 points can be solved with more bike lanes, and the most used lanes should be expanded to two lanes per direction with sidewalk cutouts to enable passing and loading.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 5:41am

• Daniel Rothblatt

  I support the new guidelines for pedal-assist commercial bicycles. I live on the Upper West Side, where there are far too many freight trucks, and giving freight companies an alternative (cheaper) last-mile solution will make my neighborhood and the rest of the city cleaner and safer.

  I only ask that DOT widen its standard bike lane design and rework existing bike lanes to accommodate these new bikes since they can be four feet wide in bike lanes that are often only five feet wide. I expect pedal-assist commercial bikes to be quite popular, and whether the infrastructure is there or not, other cyclists will try to overtake them if they’re stuck behind them; we need to ensure that that can be done safely.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 6:26am

• Peter Steinman

  Good, now, when bicycles that are supposed to stay in bike lanes, come up onto the sidewalk, where they don’t belong, and then hit people the bicycles will be twice as big, and may be twice as heavy or more and hurt people even more. Has the city not noticed that bicyclists and delivery people ride their bicycles anyway they like, anywhere they like, with no regard to the bicycle regulations?

  Comment added August 15, 2023 6:48am

• F Blanc

  Fully support this – however would be curious to know how they would interact with existing bike lanes – for regular bikes. As most bike lanes are already too narrow. Perhaps that can be part of the design consideration for the revamped 3rd ave in Manhattan – or taking and extra car street lane – as trucks already do for commercial deliveries etc.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 7:23am

• Zachary Vietze

  I might support this for the obvious reasons, BUT…
  The city has done very little to protect pedestrians from all the new micro-transport vehicles that have become a menace to everyone. If this rule gets bikes off the sidewalks, great. When will someone realize that the e-bikes and all other 2 wheeled vehicles riding everywhere while cops play candy crush on their phones is not acceptable???

  Comment added August 15, 2023 7:30am

• CHESTER WILLIS

  The NYC DOT Commissioner is in way over his head and utterly unqualified. The clown show of the Adams administration has now made possible to be worse than the previous administration. Good luck with pedal bikes during snow storms.

  Comment attachment
  CLOWN-SHOW.pdf

  Comment added August 15, 2023 8:23am

• Thomas Nonnon

  Pedal Assist Cargo Bikes is a really stupid idea launched by NYC DOT.
  Rather than having motorized eBikes, CitiBikes and all motorized transportation devices be licensed and enforced to obey the rules of the road (like staying off the sidewalks & only riding in the direction of the cars, allowing for 4-wheeled pedal pushed cargo bikes claiming to be environmentally friendly is not true. What could possibly go wrong: many-many more cargo bikes instead of larger vehicles for the voluminous deliveries, traffic backups, parking spaces or sidewalks taken up by these devices, health problems (leg cramps), etc.
  Ever drive behind a horse & carriage in Amish country???
  NYC DOT is just screwing up the NYC streets moreso as it pushes for congestion pricing due to NYC having created the congestion (like bike lanes, single use bus lanes, pedestrian plazas, etc.) without doing anything to alleviate cars from coming into the city, like having fully functional MTA service overnight. Fix the problems before creating more rules that add to the problem of moving around NYC.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 8:26am

• Jesse Klein

  Allowing wider cargo e-bikes for deliveries is a great idea and will help reduce pollution and improve safety by removing trucks from the road.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 9:10am

• J. KNOWLES

  This is the worst idea since allowing evhicles to take over NYC. Are you seriously thinking these wide and cumbersome trolleys are NOT going to hijack the bike lanes, and in the wrong direction, like all e-vehicles do now? And at 25mph, they will need monitoring to be in the road only, as 20 is Max in bike lanes and Parks, but of course not enforced. Horrible idea. All the Trans Alt money and influence rules the DOT and its disgusting. Print this, don’t censor comments.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 9:42am

• Alexis Adler

  Yes more flexible rules for cargo bikes with more supporting infrastructure for bike traffic and storage as well as charging stations. As a biker of more than 4 decades, the city has become more bike friendly thanks to our advocacy but we have a long way to go to catch up to places like Copenhagen or China.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 9:46am

• Betty Kay

  I support the proposed DOT rule that would allow 4-wheel and 48-inch pedal assist cargo bikes in NYC. Cargo bikes would reduce the congestion and carbon emissions of the trucks that they replace, but I also like that they would be more pedestrian friendly due to their size and hopefully improved sightlines. However, a proliferation of cargo bikes, especially 48-inch wide cargo bikes will require the creation of a network of much wider bike lanes, shared streets and vehicle lanes that can be used for micro mobility so that there is space to safely use pedal bikes too.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 10:28am

• Chris Efthimiou

  I would like to express my full support for the amendment to DOT’s Traffic Rules regarding the operation of pedal-assist commercial bicycles in New York City. Pedal-assist commercial bicycles can provide a safer, cleaner alternative to the reliance on polluting fossil fuel vehicles to make commercial deliveries. NYC will benefit from cleaner air, contribute to meeting its emissions reduction goals and reduce the number of large delivery vehicles that pose a significant safety hazard on our streets.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 10:28am

• NYC-EVSA

  We have an e-vehicle CRISIS on our hands in this city. Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal stated that e-vehicle complaints are the #1 complaint he receives to his office. E-Vehicle Safety Alliance has scores of members who are victims of serious e-vehicle crashes ( pedestrians and cyclists) and unfortunately, the number grows daily. E-Vehicles that crash into peds and cyclists almost always hit and run. There is absolutely ZERO accountability from riders, the city, citi -bike, delivery platforms and very little enforcement from NYPD. No laws on books are being enforced because the city seems to buy into “ enforcement is not an option”. How insane is that? How do we change the egregious behavior of e -bike riders, such as the ones that killed Lisa Banes, mowed over 6 year old Henry Diaz in a PARK critically injuring him or severely neurologically damaged our Pam Manasse without consequences? When did any modicum of common sense disappear? These are 3 examples of thousands. Yes, thousands of accidents since e -bikes entered our city. E-bikers, themselves will be much safer with regulations and enforcement of laws on books. We need reclassification of e-bikes from bicycles to class b moped. A bike with a motor and a throttle is NOT a bicycle. We demand registration/licensing/inspection/insurance for all e vehicles. Are these victims being considered in this? NO. Disabled, Elderly, people who are deaf or blind are not being considered AT ALL. This is madness. Our streets are being taken over by special interest groups that only care about safety when it fits their own agenda. WE represent the majority of New Yorkers. WE absolutely are the majority of voters. We are not paid by anyone. We have ONE agenda and that is SAFETY for ALL.
  It is unconscionable to bring in one more e-vehicle of ANY kind before fixing the e- vehicle crisis we are facing all day everyday in this city.
  Stop making decisions based on DOT data that is completely inaccurate. There is no e-vehicle crash category on a police report. The majority if these crashes are misreported or unreported. The factual truth is not being represented whatsoever in DOT stats. Does DOT care to have their skewed data fixed? Or is there some reason you do not want accurate stats around e- vehicle crashes? Our EVSA victims have shown their reports so there is no defense you can make. Stop saying “ but look over here” whenever the issue of e-vehicle crashes comes up, DOT. You either care about safety for all in every crash situations of any kind or you do not. It is not either/or. Being selective about safety is 100% irresponsible. There is an e-vehicle crisis right in front of you, DOT. Please stop ignoring and deflecting. It makes you look bad, the city look bad and it is killing and maiming people. It is also diminishing the quality of life for people who just want to walk on a sidewalk or in a park without fear. Stop the madness and do not allow cargo e- bikes to add to the growing e- vehicle crisis that is overwhelming the city. Listen to the people. Instead of asking for comments that won’t actually have any effect on outcomes, wouldn’t it be ideal to ask for a vote of the PEOPLE. We, the majority, do not want e-bikes in parks and e cargo vehicles in city forced upon us! Why not a ballot initiative on these DOT decisions? We would win in a landslide. Hence, we dont get to vote. This IS still a democracy. Yes or No?

  Comment added August 15, 2023 10:36am

• Robert Doron

  I hope that all vehicles will have license plates. The most dangerous operation is with vehicles that cannot be traced.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 10:45am

• Andrew E

  This is a terrible idea in the absence of requiring licensure, insurance, and stringent enforcement of traffic laws against the operators of the vehicles and those that employ them or for whom they contract if they are independent contractors. The City is becoming dangerous and unwalkable as this agenda-driven mayhem continues.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 10:59am

• Roe

  I have been cycling in the city since the day I came to NYC December 1979. Back then few cycled daily all year around and there were no bike lanes or what so ever. But for a long time well until the recent arrival of all sorts of electric two wheelers and electric delivery cycles I have always felt safe, followed traffic rules.
  Now I find myself attacked by danger from all sides and am scared to ride my bicycle in the city, except in cold weather along the Hudson River bike trail. Young office guys on scooters without warning signs scoot by way too fast on either side, people on the electric CITI bikes especially follow no rules, and at each corner whether I have the light or not cyclists can come from any direction. It is CHAOS without any enforcement. As a pedestrian all of these bikes can appear on the sidewalk anytime. In addition trucks and cars often do not pay attention to bike lanes and block them, forcing cyclists ( I am on an ordinary bicycle) to go into the road where there are cars.
  I welcome the arrival of these wider man driven delivery vehicles; they obviously will be electrically driven with all that weight.
  Until there are clear rules about speed, consistent enforcement of traffic rules /regulations , and steep fines for violations of rules and safety I am petrified that these vehicles will make it impossible for me to have Joy ( and efficiency in getting around on my very practical, meant for the flats the city has. I already have reduced my cycling to strictly recreational along the nicely paved bike lanes along the water at early hours and wintertimes…..due to the lack of commitment of the city to enforce the traffic rules.
  The city could fetch lots of money in fines by fining the 99% of cyclists who do not follow the rules.
  I suggest you first go back to basics; CITI bike program to issue with registration on line traffic rules and amount of fines for violations, at each station to post those rules. Also to have all users of electric bikes and mopeds register annually and issue minimum guidelines for the safety of their batteries, and allocate police to fine people who do not abide to the rules.
  Last, these new vehicles should not be allowed on the bike lanes; they are too wide and will undoubtedly park on those lanes while delivering, forcing regular cyclist into the road.
  It only works when safety is thought through and rules enforced. It seems that thus far this has not happened which has resulted in pushing people like me mostly out of the streets and making it impossible for parents of school age children to teach them how to ride a bike without fearing for their life.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 11:08am

• Rekha Grennan

  I am all for reducing carbon emissions, but I am astounded by how little traffic enforcement we have. Our streets have become the wild west with e-bikes, e-scooters and cyclists riding all over the place with little to no adherence to traffic laws. They don’t even use turn signals. Before we put more non-motor traffic on the roads… get alignment on the existing vehicles. The city is under siege by non- licensed operators and pedestrians are not safe!

  Comment added August 15, 2023 11:15am

• Emma

  Cargo ebikes for deliveries are a great idea. However, having a wide cargo bike in the bike lane makes the bike lane too dangerous for those of us riding bicycles. The cargo ebikes will be wider than the current ebikes, which means that it will be impossible for a bicycle or ebike to pass them if they are going slow or stopped. When they make a delivery, even if they are supposed to move out of the bike lane, that will be impossible for them in many cases because there is simply not any other place for the delivery ebike to be parked. And, what if a delivery ebike needs to pass another stopped or slow delivery ebike? Furthermore, with the protected bike lanes, there isn’t any easy way to get out of the bike lane and into the other lanes if needed to pass a stopped cargo ebike. Either the bike lanes should be widened to the width of least 2 cargo delivery bikes, or the cargo delivery ebikes should not ride in the bike lanes.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 11:49am

• David Achelis

  I am President of the West 50s Neighborhood Association. The Number One complaint about quality of life in my neighborhood, is the out of control bike, E-bike ,Moped, Motorcycle and scooter situation. The city has done absolutely nothing to educate or enforce the laws designed to protect us all. Every day the situation gets worse, and yet the city seems determined to keep shoving unwanted vehicles into the streets and sidewalks. The DOT has shown it is incapable of policing the streets, so why jam more unlicensed and uninsured vehicles into the situation. NO to more bicycles!

  Comment attachment
  The-Bike-Problem.pdf

  Comment added August 15, 2023 12:38pm

• Anne Hayes

  Leading your argument with environmental wins is a positive point when considering pedal assist commercial bikes – cargo bikes- but my initial concerns are as follows:

  1) Do cargo bikes use lithium ion batteries as other pedal assist bikes do? If so, that’s concerning as we’ve seen deadly consequences from those batteries exploding and igniting fires. How is DOT looking at minimize no the risk?

  2) Do cargo bikes have the 360 degree visibility field that other bikes have. It seems the wide box portion of the bike might impede the operator’s field of vision, particularly from the rear.

  3) Will these cargo bikes be using the bike lanes or the car/motorcycle designated lanes? The width and height of the cargo bikes will block other cyclists’ view in the bike lane and may be too slow and impede vehicular traffic in the main traffic flow.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 1:11pm

• Karen Sughrue

  Once again, DOT is proposing a rule that will harm pedestrians and harm our quality of life. You want to allow motorized four wheel vehicles in bike lanes! These are NOT bikes. What is wrong with you people? The bike lanes, streets and sidewalks are already overrun by E-motorized bikes and scooters and other e-vehicles making a walk in the neighborhood treacherous. Stop this madness. The Dept of Transportation should make our streets more livable, not more dangerous.

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  Comment added August 15, 2023 1:20pm

• Enid Braun

  While this rule change may be well-intended in that no regulations are included to insure that these vehicles don’t simply add to the problems of illegal use of sidewalks and adherence to existing traffic laws. Drivers–or riders–of commercial vehicles should have a special operating license and an identifying license plate for law enforcement. While pedal-assist vehicles may not currently be regarded as motorized (though there are many reasons they should be), the additional size and bulk of these proposed vehicles adds even greater potential dangers.

  If these vehicles were to replace large trucks for last mile that may indeed be an improvement. My fear is that these will simply add to traffic congestion and pedestrian hazards with no ability for injured parties to go after the driver.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 2:29pm

• Emily B

  This is a VERY BAD IDEA. NY pedestrians are already terrorized by the hordes of e-vehicles speeding in all directions, even on sidewalks, tearing through red lights. There is no regulation, no enforcement of the laws we already have. Will these cargo bikes be regulated, licensed, insured, inspected?

  Comment added August 15, 2023 3:48pm

• Elias Schultz

  I strongly support the proposed rule. Allowing larger cargo bikes will replace many dangerous large trucks, which pollute and take up lots of space in bike lanes and driving lanes, causing more traffic. As a resident of a busy commercial street and frequent pedestrian, replacing massive trucks that constantly clog up space for unloading will seriously improve my quality of life.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 4:25pm

• Marsha Costa

  I totally support the idea of more cargo bikes!

  Comment added August 15, 2023 6:04pm

• Joanna Smith

  I am very enthusiastic about the possibility of replacing commercial truck traffic with cargo bikes in New York City, and have been advocating for this for over a decade. It make sense environmentally, economically, and from health and safety perspectives. We need to address climate change by reducing our dependence on fossil fuels, and reduce the carnage on our streets that oversized vehicles cause. This plan will do both. Thank you for supporting commercial cargo bikes.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 7:06pm

• Sharon Riley

  This is patently absurd. Many people, and esp. seniors, are fearful of crossing the streets because bikes and other vehicles are coming at them from many directions.

  Before adding BIGGER AND MORE DANGEROUS VEHICLES, the Mayor needs to make sure the all bicyclists and others are licensed — b/c apparently that’s the only way that they can be identified and ticketed. I understand that these larger bikes can replace large trucks, which is great, but anyone driving one must be licensed and identifiable. Otherwise we are adding to our existing problem.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 8:44pm

• MHARTMANN

  This proposal is a very dangerous one for each and every person in this city who is a pedestrian, already dodging all kinds of e-, motorized vehicles riding on our sideWALKS, not obeying traffic rules, lights, exceeding speed limits, etc. DOT is moving in a wrong headed direction with this proposal.

  Comment added August 15, 2023 8:59pm

• kate hoesfield

  As an elder person I live in constant fear walking on the sidewalk in the East Village. E-bikes are speeding down the streets the wrong direction, speeding on the sidewalk and disregarding the safety of pedestrians and children, often looking at a mobile decide and sometimes stoned.
  DOT needs to establish and REGULATE laws that protect pedestrians from out of control E-bikes!!!

  Comment added August 15, 2023 9:03pm

• Glenn Dewar

  Trying to force delivery drivers to use cargo bikes is unconscionable.

  There was just a union fight where the delivery drivers were fighting for air conditioning to be available in their trucks. This Transportation Alternatives garbage is a right wing attack on the drivers from a wealth funded bike lobby who falsely pretends to be “progressive”

  Stop attacking the delivery drivers who bring us the goods we need every day, stop excluding disabled people from these jobs. Let them drive trucks as they have done for decades just fine, don’t force them to broil in the summer and freeze in the winter.

  Comment added August 16, 2023 4:06am

• Lena

  NYC needs this expansion of mobility devices to meet the tremendous diversity of need and cargo we have in our big beautiful city. Streets with fewer cars and trucks, and more bikes moving at safe speeds, are the streets we deserve!

  Comment added August 16, 2023 8:17am

• Kaylee Knowles

  I am hugely in support of this rule change. We must make our city more bike friendly and decrease the number of cars and trucks on our streets. This is an important step forward to reduce emissions and our impact on climate change. I fully support the increased use of cargo bikes in NYC.

  Comment added August 16, 2023 8:57am

• Ian Tong

  MUST REGULATE AND LICENSE!! These vehicles operate at motorcycle speeds without any regard to the rules of the road. My wife was hospitalized and almost died in a hit and run incident with an electric bicycle!!

  Comment added August 16, 2023 9:14am

• Beatrice Kozak

  Pedal assist delivery bikes are a bad idea. Pedestrians have enough vehicles coming foe them with the lack of vehicular rules — bikes, escooters, etc. We don’t need more vehicular methods mowing us down that don’t heed any rules of the rkad. Start by licensing all modes of transportation.

  Comment added August 16, 2023 10:18am

• Ben Listman

  I fully support the expansion of DOT’s expansion of its pedal assist bicycle definition. I do hope, though, that at the same time, the DOT is working to create wider, more protected bike lanes. And more space in general for the growing number of micromobilty vehicles using city streets.
  These pedal assist bikes used for cargo will be larger, and wider. I do hope that businesses use this as an opportunity to diversify their delivery fleets, but this will lead to more crowded bike lanes, some of which will only be just wide enough for these types of bikes. This may leave little space for other cyclists trying to share the bike lane.
  Larger cargo bikes may also be less able to maneuver around obstacles or obstructed bike lanes when that happens.
  Cargo bikes, and bikes in general, need greater dedicated space on our streets.

  Comment added August 16, 2023 11:03am

• Madeline A

  I think pedal-assist commercial bikes are a really thoughtful step in the right direction improving the lives of a range of New Yorkers. I live on a commercial, heavily pedestrianized street in Manhattan. The pedal-assist commercial bikes would be a huge improvement to the built environment, pedestrian safety, air pollution, noise pollution, and overall safety and accessibility of the neighborhood for differently abled bodies.

  The pedal-assist commercial bikes would displace the large commercial trucks that fundamentally degrade the neighborhood. The trucks are loud, have been causing a huge amount of wear and tear to the street such that the asphalt is crumbling, and are dangerously difficult to navigate around for pedestrians and folks who are differently abled. They stop and block ramps, they have a much longer braking period because of the momentum so are less able to adapt to people crossing streets and bikes moving about.

  The pedal assist bikes allow for greater flexibility in the size of cargo that can be transported so small business owners have a more financially viable way to receive and move around goods. They also allow for a smaller industry of the bikes, creating more small business owners and greater segmentation in last mile delivery, moving business away from mega-corporations like Amazon.

  The bikes also reduce pollution from the cargo trucks and represent a greener future for the neighborhood. I feel very strongly that pedal-assist commercial bikes are a critical piece to the multi-factor improvement for transportation, street-safety, and built environment for New York. Those who are against the amendment are either so wealthy and out of touch with the lives of the average New Yorker or want to styme the growth of small businesses and more appropriate means of transportation that service a segment of small businesses and transportation needs that has otherwise been unmet and totally under serviced.

  Comment added August 16, 2023 12:41pm

• Gina Kropf

  Our streets are chaos. No one pays attention to anything. It is terrifying to ride a bike in the city now.
  Even worse to walk. I am consistently “nearly missed” by a bicycle flying down the sidewalk.

  Comment added August 16, 2023 3:52pm

• Rachel Grosso Hodges

  I fully support the DOT in modifying the rules for allowing pedal-assisted commercial bicycles to operate as freight carriers in NYC. This is an excellent step towards reducing GHGs and traffic congestion while promoting efficient freight operations and legitimizing bicycles as utilitarian vehicles. Thank you for your important work on this matter and for leading the US.

  Comment added August 17, 2023 2:43pm

• Eric

  I am in favor of this new rule with a modification to have these larger delivery vehicles ride on the regular street rather than the bike lane. Bike lanes were put in place for the use of commuters, tourists or basically a person wanting to ride a bicycle from point A to B. If you begin allowing these large delivery vehicles in the bike lanes, there is a higher risk of a cyclist being hit by a car as they will now pass these larger delivery bicycles.

  Thus pass the rule and have these bicycles ride on the regular car part of the street.

  Comment added August 18, 2023 9:08am

• kS

  Until NYC has strict enforcement to register and license all micro-mobility devices including e-bike, e-scotters, mopeds, unicycles, hoverboards, Segways and such that must obey traffic law to stop posting dangers to pedestrians and motorized vehicles and the operators themselves, to introduce another type of motorized vehicles to NYC hustle roads would cause increasing confusion to all road users. Law should made equal to ALL TYPES of ROAD USERS THAT OCCUPY VEHICULAR ROADS and strictly enforced of ANY traffic violations. These types of micro-mobility devices has already made NYC unsafe of its operators and pedestrians and they do whatever they want, and now they impose dangers of attacking pedestrians including using gun and fled. How is it possible to introducing another type of this while NYC is not regulating and allowing all these craziness happening first!!! The speeding and red light cameras would need to issue violations for all these too!

  Comment added August 18, 2023 5:35pm

• Susan Rike

  As a native New Yorker, I’m appalled at how the city streets and sidewalks have become overrun with bikes, e-bikes, motor bikes, scooters, skateboards, and other vehicles. Have almost been run down too many times. Recently, I was almost mowed down by a bicycle on lower 5th Avenue at dusk. I had the light. To avoid being hit, I stepped back and fell into the curb, wrenching my back. I suffered severe back pain for a month. Next time may be worse. This has to end! PEDESTRIANS HAVE THE RIGHT OF WAY.

  Comment added August 18, 2023 8:41pm

• Rosa Chang

  I am in support of this revision to pedal assist commercial bicycles for 3 reasons – our street congestion, environmental considerations, and a safer bicycle network. We have a growing delivery vehicle problem in NYC especially as relates to parking of said vehicles on our congested city streets. In the Financial District where I live, there are constant conflicts between delivery, commercial and placard parked vehicles clogging our extremely narrow streets. Providing pathways to last mile delivery of goods via bicycles would help to address the growing congestion/parking conflict problem, as well as be a more environmentally friendly alternative to double parked polluting trucks that always seem to be “on” even when parked. Creating/expanding a network of bike lanes that are capable of accommodating these wider commercial bikes would help our commuter and recreational bicyclists by making wider and safer lanes for everyone. Overall an excellent idea for our city and hope it gets implemented.

  Comment added August 19, 2023 1:19am

• Zachary Vietze

  This all sounds ok, but I really don’t see clear information in the full text about these vehicles parking or riding on sidewalks, and really should include all two wheeled vehicles and not just ones with pedals. There are too many instances of people on electric and gas powered vehicles riding on pedestrian only sidewalks. I also see them disregarding all traffic laws. This is a real problem that needs to be addressed. Lately I see a lot of licensed two wheeled vehicles deliberately hiding the licsence plate.

  Comment added August 21, 2023 6:39am

• Zachary Vietze

  GET THE BIKES OFF THE SIDEWALKS. There are too many instances of people on electric and gas powered vehicles riding on pedestrian only sidewalks. I also see them disregarding all traffic laws. This is a real problem that needs to be addressed. Lately I see a lot of licensed two wheeled vehicles deliberately hiding the license plate. Citibike is also a problem with some of the stations places on sidewalks. This encourages idiots riding on the sidewalks. It’s not their fault they don’t know. It’s your fault DOT. FIX IT NOW.

  Comment added August 21, 2023 6:42am

• James C

  I support the usage of more cargo bikes. However, I do not support the models being currently tested by DOT with large, flat windshield, and very bulky box construction. These are too dangerous to be used in bike lanes, which is where they will wind up. They block sight lines and their battering-ram like design could be problematic for pedestrians. If these are to become legal, they must be designed, allowed and enforced to use travel lanes and not bike lanes.

  Comment added August 21, 2023 10:08am

• Peter W. Beadle

  While I generally support the proposed rule to increase cargo bike utilization, I oppose the limitation in the proposed rule on the length of commercial cargo bicycle & trailer combinations. Limiting such solutions to only 10 feet is unnecessary and inadequate to accomodate already proven cargo bicycle solutions currently in use in the City. I am a regular cyclist and an attorney who represents cyclists and pedestrians injured in traffic crashes. I am very familiar with traffic conditions on both roadways and bikeways. The current bike/trailer combos utilized by businesses such as Amazon and Whole Foods to transport goods in the City, and which can extend upwards of 16′ in length, work and do not subject other road/bike users to undue risk, delay or congestion. I can understand the need to set certain limits on the size of cargo bicycles so that they are compatible with existing infrastructure and traffic, but as these bicycle/trailer combos have already established their functionality and safety it seems strange that the new rule would actually prohibit them, while otherwise increasing options for the use of other cargo bike solutions. A more rational and appropriate approach would be to set limits that continue to allow exisiting uses. We should always be looking for ways to limit motor vehicle use and should never abandon a solution that has proven itself to be effective.

  Comment added August 21, 2023 10:36am

• Lynn Y

  We absolutely need to promote the use of pedal-assist technology to create commercial, emissions-free cargo options.

  I’m concerned about two things, although I favor the spirit of the new rule. The length rule (10 feet) seems to eliminate trailer designs that are already in use. The rule must be more forward-looking.

  Secondly, these vehicles should be licensed and should not be used in bike lanes. Shared lanes with automobile traffic are where they belong. Current bike lanes are not wide enough for these vehicles. Commercial pedal-assist bikes will reduce truck traffic and there will be room on the road for these larger bikes that need to stop and unload.

  Comment added August 21, 2023 12:12pm

• michaelmvm

  this is a great idea that will reduce carbon emissions and lead to more sustainable deliveries in the city! however, there should be fewer random restrictions. for example, the 10 foot length rule is unnecessary, as allowing longer vehicles to carry more goods will take more trucks off the road. don’t shoot yourself in the foot by smothering potential future innovations in the crib.

  Comment added August 21, 2023 3:18pm

• Thomas Proctor

  The currently functioning pedal assist bikes are functioning well in NYC, and I support efforts to expand their use. However, the proposed rules are very restrictive. They should, at minimum, not exclude the currently working solutions, and should remain as flexible as possible: there is no reason to outlaw pedal assist trailers, for example.

  Comment added August 21, 2023 8:22pm

• Katherine O'Sullivan

  The city can’t manage the e-vehicles in place now that are terrorizing our city!
  They follow no rules and there is almost no enforcement.
  These motorized cargo vehicles will NOT be classified as motor vehicles! We do not want these commercial cargo pedal assist bikes and we are the voters.

  Comment added August 24, 2023 12:21pm

• Ricky Santos

  This is fantastic news. I’m glad the DOT is moving forward with innovative technologies that can help revolutionize our relationships with the streets. Commercial cargo is a big part of our daily lives and these bikes will help create safer environments, reduce traffic and reduce pollution for New Yorkers.

  Comment added August 25, 2023 8:56am

• BYron Pope

  Where are these vehicles going to Park? In the bike lanes ! Along with trucks, Ubers , Construction and garbage bins!

  Comment added August 25, 2023 10:47am

• Jason McDowell

  Walking on neighborhood sidewalks is becoming more dangerous every day thanks to unenforced rules about delivery bicycles and mopeds. What’s to stop larger commercial cargo bikes from invading that same space?

  I love the intention of this and we should always pursue sustainability in our city when we can. Cargo bikes, when used properly and legally, are a great way to reduce carbon emissions in cities like ours.

  But we can’t implement larger cargo bikes on New York City streets without considering the reality that the bulk of these bikes will feel empowered to use the sidewalks to circumvent traffic. We cannot implement this without also regulating it. These bikes would need to be risking a massive fine every time a tire touches a sidewalk and the NYPD would need to be encouraged to enforce the rules, which they currently won’t do.

  Comment added August 25, 2023 4:58pm

• Rachel Geib

  This proposal will make bike lanes even more dangerous than they already are; biking in NY is incredibly difficult and often involves dodging pedestrians and cars; I broke my hand due to a bike crash when someone on a Vespa was going the wrong way on a lane; the rules of the bike lane are rarely enforced by police and having large carriers on the already tiny lanes will create huge jams and force bicyclists to move into the car lanes. It will be pandemonium. Please don’t pass this bill.

  Comment added August 28, 2023 9:25am

• Matthew Hughsam

  Bike lanes are already congested and dangerous for regular cyclists not on e-bikes. Create wider lanes and more infrastructure if we’re going to open them up even further. To do so without more infrastructure would lead to more injuries and death. And less people cycling and more people using cars.

  Comment added August 28, 2023 10:38am

• Two Faces of Ms

  In theory using pedal-assist bikes for the last mile is a good idea; however, we know how poorly NYC implements EVERYTHING. These will likely end up creating more traffic (and accidents) than the current trucks. Moreover, how will this be handled during inclement weather? And will they be restricted in what can be delivered in that last mile wagon? Medicines need a temperature controlled environment and UPS & FedEx only just became required to offer air conditioning in their delivery trucks. They should not be allowed in the bike lane, west side bike path, or anywhere else that personal bikes are allowed. They also need to be licensed, registered, and insured.

  I see this being a fools errand just like congestion pricing.

  Comment added August 30, 2023 12:38pm

• Wendy

  NYC should be planning for cargo and micromobility lanes that do not impinge on bike lane space. Please do not over-crowd the bike lanes with pedal assists, cargo and other conveyances that are so much faster, heavier and more dangerous in a crash than regular bicycles! Especially with congestion pricing coming, new cyclists need to feel safe in the bike lanes. I urge you to rethink the roadways with fewer trucks and cars, less parking, more bikes and more bike-based mobility and delivery lanes (and loading zones). Let’s make sure street design is convivial and safe for all types of riders and for healthier air and climate!

  Comment added August 30, 2023 1:38pm

• Mitchell Rose

  While I appreciate the green-ness of this proposal perhaps we have not fully considered the likely unintended consequences. On the Upper West Side where I live there is not a day that goes by without delivery folks on scooters and bicycles of all sorts running red lights and endangering folks who merely want to cross the streets in safety. I can only imagine the mayhem in the outer boroughs where law enforcement may be less prevelant. Were this proposal to be approved it’s likely that this behaviour would increase, and that danger to pedestrians due to the larger and heavier payloads allowed under this proposal would increase as well. Accidents between pedestrians and human powered bicycles favor the bicyclist but more often than not both parties can walk away. Are we sure we’re not trading safety for commercial and environmental interests? Please don’t fob this issue over to law enforcement and say it’s the police’s problem. Proper enforcement is not occurring today so let’s not believe it will get better in the future.
  On a less important note the paragraph about allowing parking these things on the sidewalk “temporarily” is just rubbish. What does “temporarily” mean and how will it be enforced. I don’t mind walking around a bicycle chained to a stand or pipe but please consider those folks in wheelchairs who won’t be able to pass. So please consider a rewrite which will help in future ajudication for surely that will be necessary. Thanks!

  Comment added August 30, 2023 9:58pm

• Arild Brudeli

  This is a great idea. pedal asissted cargo bikes with 4 wheels is part of a sustainable delivery. But also Ligth elektric vehicles (LEV) in the same size should be considdered. In Europe there is several small fully electric cargo quadracycles. These together with pedal asisseted bikes are able to do more efficient delivery than Vans mening that many of these LEV’s are purpose build for last mile deliver and with more power and load capasity and with a range of more than 5 miles.

  Comment added September 3, 2023 8:58am

• CN

  It is imperative that all commercial bicycles be required to have safety features to protect vulnerable members of the public. A beeping sound device should be mandatory on all commercial bikes, emitting periodic beeps to alert blind and visually impaired pedestrians that a bicycle is approaching or parked nearby. This warning system could prevent tragic collisions and injuries.

  Additionally, a visible license plate on all commercial bicycles would enable citizens to report traffic violations more effectively. By providing license numbers to 311 or law enforcement, dangerous or illegal riding could be traced and deterred.

  Finally, we must prohibit commercial bicyclists from parking on sidewalks, even temporarily, to load or unload. Blocking sidewalks with parked bicycles poses a serious obstacle and safety risk to people in wheelchairs, parents with strollers, and other pedestrians. Our sidewalks must be kept clear and passable for all.

  Implementing these reasonable requirements for commercial bicycles will demonstrate a commitment to protecting public safety and ensuring our streets are navigable by the most vulnerable. The minor inconvenience to commerical bicyclists is outweighed by the benefits of reducing accidents, injuries, and blocked access for people with disabilities. Simple beeping devices, license plates, and sidewalk restrictions are prudent steps toward a more just and equitable transportation system.

  Comment added September 6, 2023 3:15am

• CN

  It should be mandatory for commercial bicycle operators to take a road safety test before being allowed to operate a commercial bicycle.

  Comment added September 6, 2023 4:06am

• Already Hit By A Bike On a Sidewalk

  This would be catastrophic for the sidewalk space and pedestrians: It will definitely encourage cyclists to ride on the sidewalk. This will also encourage moped, bicycles, etc to follow suit ! Deliveries should be made in the curb lane. Just because they are now considered “cargo bikes” does not make them eligible to use the sidewalk.

  Comment added September 6, 2023 6:27pm

• Trudy Stevens

  We already have major problems with bikes of all kinds in the city. Riders do not follow traffic rules of the road and create very dangerous conditions for pedestrians by riding recklessly on sidewalks. Cargo bikes on sidewalks for any reason, ie. riding, loading, unloading, just create a larger danger to pedestrians. The City has done nothing to create a safe environment involving use of bikes and can not be depended upon to create a safe use of cargo bikes.

  Comment added September 6, 2023 9:08pm

• Hal Eskenazi

  I am a cyclist. I know the power and damage that a bike can do when hitting someone. Add a motor, pedal assist which can require an RPM of 90, and the damage multiplies geometrically. Put a motorized vehicle on the sidewalk where there are pedestrians, children, elderly, handicap and carriages expect to feel safe and you have a formula that can make the City [Council] responsible for more people being maimed or killed.
  It is a “free for all” now with many of the motorized vehicles riding on the sidewalks, on the streets the wrong way, seemingly coming out of “nowhere”. There is no enforcement. Why would you want to add to this chaos? A better idea might be to enforce and strengthen the current laws, so people feel safe. People belong on sidewalks. Everything else in the street and NOT in the bike lane.

  Comment added September 6, 2023 9:13pm

• Stuart M Diamond

  Please keep all ebikes, cargo e-bikes, bicycles and the like off of the sidewalks. Enforcement has been negligible and as a senior citizen i find it extremely dangerous navigating the sidewalks, this is a real life-safety issue for me. Thanks

  Comment added September 7, 2023 8:45am

• Leslie Clark

  I am OPPOSED to this rule. A “bicycle” that is 10-ft long and 4-ft wide wth as many as four wheels is not a bicycle. It is a a danger to other drivers, to pedestrians and especially to those on sidewalks where the drivers of these “bicycles” will no doubt want to ride. Since DOT doesn’t enforce any of its rules about riding a “bicycle” on a sidewalk or through a red light or outside the bike lane or the wrong way on any street, I can only imagine when what will happen when these “bicycle” behemoths are unleashed on our streets. NO to this rule.

  Comment added September 7, 2023 2:04pm

• Michael Flynn

  This is insanity bicycles should not be allowed on sidewalks ( pedestrian walkway) and speeding e-cycles and scooters are too fast for some people to get out of the way of this will only make the dirt bikes which by the way drive on the so called closed streets to use the pedestrian sidewalks as well none of them have insurance and if someone gets hurt they’re out of work and on their own the city is already doing nothing to help but now purposefully endangering the lives of citizens for the sake of delivery persons and joy riders

  Comment added September 7, 2023 2:17pm

• Yvonne Groseil

  I am totally opposed to this plan. We are already endangered by e-bikes and other e-vehicles that run lights and drive on the sidewalks. Now we will have these gigantic vehicles (with trailers, too) on the sidewalks also. Oh yes, they have to go on the sidewalk to deliver, of course, which means they will be driving right down the block–through the strollers and walkers and over the dogs and the elderly people with canes. I think I saw that movie–do they get points for killing off the elderly and disabled?

  Comment added September 7, 2023 2:19pm

• Tracy Sallows

  Cargo Bikes would make an already bad situation worse. In my neighborhood of Hell’s Kitchen we already have terrible trouble with bikes on sidewalks, bikes riding the wrong way on one way streets, bikes running red lights from bike lanes. (I have even had to avoid being run down by motor bikes riding on the Pedestrian path in Hudson River Park!) You can no longer cross the street or exit a car and just look out for cars. The cyclists obey no rules whatsoever; neither traffic rules or pedestrian right of way. (The pedi cabs show the same disregard and right now there are three pedi-cabs parked on the side walk by the school, obstructing pedestrians, as I write this. I have also found men sleeping in parked pedi-cabs that straddle the sidewalk and the street. The street cleaners have to go around them and they don’t get ticketed because they have no licenses or ID.) To add cargo bikes into this mix would be disastrous.
  I have no reason to believe cargo bikes would follow traffic rules any better than the cyclists and pedi-cab drivers, especially if allowed to deliver on sidewalks. In addition, cargo bikes are wide and sidewalk space has already been massively encroached upon by outdoor dining. Please do not approve of cargo bikes, especially on city sidewalks.

  Comment added September 7, 2023 2:24pm

• Kate Livingstone

  While reducing carbon emissions and noise is something I support, this plan is half-baked. The proliferation of bikes and e-bikes combined with the complete lack of traffic enforcement has given riders carte blanche. They have taken over our streets and sidewalks. It’s become the wild west – they go in any and every direction they want and do not heed traffic signals. Navigating the streets of the city as a pedestrian feels like being in some kind of horrific video game. Allowing cargo bikes that are wider than bike lanes in the bike lanes is a recipe for further disaster for pedestrians. When they stop to unload a delivery in the bike lanes, bicyclists will invariably use the sidewalks with even greater frequency (better for them to hit a pedestrian than for them to be hit by a moving vehicle). A street lane should be dedicated for the use of cargo bikes, not the bike lane. If the city is trying to limit traffic overall (which is great) with congestion pricing and now cargo bikes, then it should follow suit that a vehicle lane should be reassigned for cargo bikes instead of adding to the amount of users in an already limited space. And while we’re at it, the city should be mandating e-bikes and bikes to be registered with some kind of license plate. It would create a much needed source of revenue and also help identify offenders who hit pedestrians, ride on sidewalks, go in the wrong direction, etc. Please think this through. Thank you.

  Comment added September 7, 2023 3:55pm

• Daniel K.

  What more does the DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION ALTERNATIVES WANT???…. slip these rule changes in when no one is looking! I am against the re-definition of bicycles, since we already have a horrendous issue with e-bikes, mopeds, etc. with deadly litium-ion batteries that have caused 150 fires/13 deaths and 76 serious injuries

  These e bikes and mopeds are not registered, licensed, insured. They follow almost NO laws whatsoever! Our lives are already threatened by this lawlessness, promulgated by the DOT-Alternatives, and now you want more. Unsafe. The NY Times had an article today “The City Looks Different When You’re Older” and READ THOSE COMMENTS – about the absolute mess the City has become with all of these electrified vehicles with drivers with no insurance, license, whatever. WE should get to vote. Make things BALLOT INITIATIVES. Stop deciding everything FOR us……Department of Transportation Alternatives.
  We realize you know that if put to a vote, City residents would vote this down! Shame on you. How many more people have to be put in danger before this DOT- Alternatives lunacy ends?

  Comment added September 7, 2023 4:30pm

• Linda Silberman

  I think that it’s important to distinguish between motorized vehicles and non-motorized vehicles. Motorized vehicles pose much more danger to pedestrians, and can also be the cause of fires. They have no business being on sidewalks (or in bike lanes) with children, seniors, and persons with disabilities.

  Comment added September 7, 2023 4:32pm

• State Senator Liz Krueger

  Good morning,

  Please see attached my letter to NYC DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez regarding the draft regulations on cargo bikes released by the City Department of Transportation.

  Thank you,

  Liz Krueger
  State Senator

  Comment attachment
  Senator-Krueger-Letter-to-DOT-Regarding-Cargo-Bikes.pdf

  Comment added September 7, 2023 5:25pm

• Mary F

  Absolutely not. Stop making decisions for the people. The majority of New Yorkers don’t accept. what DOT is doing. Our streets have NEVER been scarier due to the mopeds and e bikes. People are fleeing the city and tourism is going plummet. I was almost killed by a peddle assist bike. They need licenses just like all e vehicles do. You have licenses for motor vehicles but not motorized vehicles. Pedal Assist have a motor. I am a lifetime liberal New Yorker and reject this proposal 100%. Horrible idea.

  Comment added September 7, 2023 7:07pm

• Neil Kearney

  I have seen many instances of the operators of pedal assisted riding in a reckless manner and with no regard to public safety or traffic rules. Please address some kind of safe operating procedures that operators must adhere by. I don’t feel that they are eligible for bike lane usage

  Comment added September 7, 2023 7:14pm

• Shelley Brevda

  Pedal assisted means e-vehicle and therefore NOT a bicycle which requires pedaling by a person and without a motor & battery.

  Bikes of any kind do not belong on sidewalks.

  All pedestrians already have to dodge a constant barrage of delivery workers and bikers riding on sidewalks. Many pedestrians are elderly, disabled, and have a hard enough time with their limited mobility dodging delivery workers and other bikers who illegally ride on sidewalks. Also, young children are vulnerable, because they can be impulsive and unpredictable walking on sidewalks while bikes are illegally speeding by.

  Comment added September 7, 2023 8:02pm

• Linda

  This is an accident waiting to happen. Who makes these new rules. I guess pedestrians don’t matter any longer

  Comment added September 8, 2023 6:40am

• Marie

  How do you think this is better??? There is nothing wrong with trucks making deliveries on city streets. Why not make a ruling no looking at your phones while your walking through the city streets. So your aware of your surroundings.. that’s where all the accidents come from. …Unless required to use streets, how will these extra wide boxes on wheels not be the end of useful bike lanes for actual bikes? A foot wider than existing cargo bikes for lanes already too small and choked with gas scooters and throttle e-bikes and parked vehicles? Will these double wide boxes not just be impassable moving blocks in lanes for commuters and others using actual bicycles in bike lanes. And won’t they realistically just park in the lane when delivering like all other cargo vehicles

  Comment added September 8, 2023 6:46am

• Barbara Burke

  I am in favor. We need to reduce truck, traffic, and also double-parking by trucks, which blocks cars and bicycles.

  Comment added September 8, 2023 8:10am

• Lizbeth Giletto

  I’ve been reading about the proposed rule change regarding NYC Cargo Bikes. This is such a bad idea. First of all – they are huge and the loading and unloading takes a long time. In addition it is usually messy with many parcels spread on the ground while they are searching for the right one creating tripping hazards.

  The proposal that would allow larger 4 wheeled “commercial cargo e-bikes” in the “protected” bike lane one stands out as being particularly problematic and not well thought out. This would be catastrophic for the sidewalk space and pedestrians: It will definitely encourage cyclists to ride on the sidewalk. This will also encourage moped, bicycle, etc to follow suit and park on the sidewalk. I live in Hells Kitchen and have already been hit twice by bikes on the sidewalk. I take my life in my hands every time I walk on the sidewalk. I question whether the DOT is prioritizing humans over business in considering this proposal.

  Comment added September 8, 2023 8:48am

• Donna Joseph

  I do NOT support the addition of motorized vehicles including those mentioned here called: Commercial Cargo Bikes on NYC streets or in bike lanes. These have no place in this walking city especially in street lanes dedicated to non-electric bicycles!
  Whomever believes this addition and change to the DOT traffic rules will reduce truck deliveries is unrealistic.
  I do however, support the removal of ALL electric bikes and scooters from the bike lanes. They are hazardous and not necessary. If you order food and have no mobility issues, use your legs to go pick it up!

  Comment added September 8, 2023 9:17am

• julie lubin

  I oppose the provision that allows a pedal-assist commercial bicycle to be parked on a sidewalk temporarily for the purpose of and while actually engaged commercially in loading and unloading property. Allowing parking on the sidewalk impedes pedestrians, regardless of the orientation of the pedal-assist commercial bicycle, especially when there multiple pedal-assist commercial bicycles associated with an establishment, or adjacent establishments. Also, this provision will encourage operators of pedal-assist commercial bicycles to ride on the sidewalk to the establishment. If parking on the sidewalk is to be permitted (which I oppose), at a minimum, language should be added explicitly stating that pedal-assist commercial vehicles shall not be ridden on the sidewalk in connection with parking there to load and unload, and that they must be walked to the sidewalk parking spot. There should also be explicit language that the pedal-assist commercial bicycles must be operated in a manner that does not adversely affect pedestrian activity and safety on the sidewalks. Thank you for your consideration of my comments.

  Comment added September 8, 2023 9:29am

• Andrew M.

  I support the use of commercial cargo bikes for delivery, but cannot support the suggested removal of parking spots in favor of reallocating the space to cargo bike use “while actually engaged commercially in loading and unloading property.” The true goal of the cargo bikes to is relieve some of the traffic pressure we are experiencing due to double-parking by delivery trucks. Removing parking spots–and no mention is made of the number of these spots–will only naturally result in either 1) general disregard and use anyway by delivery vehicles when the space should be for general public parking or 2) more double-parking. The city government has recently gifted massive portions of our pedestrian sidewalks and our parking spaces to dining sheds. Cargo bikes could easily temporarily park/deliver in a fraction of the space the sheds use. Why prioritize dining over all the valid reasons given for cargo bike use? Our space is limited and must be apportioned fairly. Removing additional street parking spots is not a useful approach to solving this problem. As well, will these large and motorized cargo bikes also use bike lanes? As a bicyclist, I can attest that they are much too large for that space. Finally, all motorized bikes should be LICENSED. These cargo bikes are replacing a delivery vehicle that is licensed and can be held responsible for general rules of the road. Adding another category of unlicensed motorized vehicle is missing the point of fair business practices and public safety.

  Comment added September 8, 2023 12:36pm

• Kenneth Hittel

  Yea, I’m all for it. This should help keep motorized Deliveristas off the sidewalks and fewer trucks on the roads.

  Comment added September 8, 2023 2:06pm

• Susan Hittel

  If this only helps reduce truck traffic & truck parking on our streets, it would seem to be a major win.

  Comment added September 8, 2023 2:10pm

• Barbara Spence

  ALL motorized vehicles should be licensed and registered and held accountable to follow the rules of the road.
  It has become unsafe to cross any street in the city. It seems electric bicycles are not required to follow simple courtesy rules, let alone safety rules not only on our streets, but also our sidewalks and in the parks.
  If the DOT would demand registration and issue traffic violations to all electric vehicles, including scooters, than the idea of cargo bicycles might be appealing – if they used the streets and not bike lanes and sidewalks.
  I don’t have faith in the DOT to take into consideration pedestrians. It hasn’t in the past.

  Comment added September 8, 2023 2:10pm

• Betty Kay

  I support allowing 48-inch-wide cargo bikes in NYC and appreciate the clarity that the proposed rule will bring regarding where they can be parked or stand along the curb. However, I am opposed to the provision that states “(iv) A pedal-assist commercial bicycle may not be parked on a sidewalk, while attended or unattended, except temporarily for the purpose of and while actually engaged commercially in loading and unloading property.”

  One of the most common complaints that I hear from people as Chair of Manhattan CB1’s transportation committee is the use of any bicycles, cargo bicycles or e-mobility devices on the sidewalk. Allowing cargo bikes to drive on the sidewalk to get to/from where they want to stop to load or unload not only takes away space from pedestrians, but also threatens pedestrian safety (even if mostly perceived) and will lead cyclists and cargo bike users to believe that bicycles of all sorts are legal on sidewalks. Residents continuously complain about restaurant delivery, Citi bike and private bicycle riders on our sidewalks; this rule as proposed will only compound the problem.

  A related concern is that package sorting will occur on the sidewalk as a loading or unloading activity. Many sidewalks in Manhattan Community District 1 are very narrow or have restaurant seating, scaffolding or other things limiting pedestrian space on our sidewalks. Although curb access is a challenge that is made ridiculously hard with the many placards used in my district, I urge the DOT to remove the exception that would allow these 48-inch-wide cargo bikes to go on the sidewalk and park for loading and unloading activities.

  Comment added September 8, 2023 3:08pm

• A Horowitz

  While the replacement of several box trucks with cargo bikes seems desirable, the question must be asked where those bikes can be ridden and parked. At 4′ wide and with 4 wheels, they are much too wide for the bike lanes and would force bikers into car traffic. They are too large to be parked on the sidewalk without restricting access for pedestrians. So if they are considered vehicular traffic and ridden in the car lanes, they would be an improvement from box trucks. While an environmental improvement, and a safety improvement for bikers and pedestrians, this might not be safe for the bike drivers. Some infrastructure change would need to happen to accommodate allowing these wider cargo bikes. Without it, you just shift the dangers, instead of eliminating them.

  Comment added September 8, 2023 6:13pm

• Lisa F. Ader

  I’m opposed to the proposed rule. It’s hard enough for pedestrians to find room on certain streets due to the restaurant build outs. The rule would encourage drivers of e bikes to drive on the sidewalks — even more than they already do. These are vehicles that should remain on the streets and not on the sidewalks.

  Comment added September 8, 2023 6:28pm

• Pamela Greitzer Manasse

  I am totally against the reclassification of commercial e-bikes to just bicycle. And that you would even consider letting them ride on our pedestrian sidewalks!!
  I was hit by a moped coming off a sidewalk. We already live in the Wild West. No way will these cargo bikes be more eco friendly! E bikes are already dangerous! Not following the laws and riding on sidewalks almost hitting everyone. No offense but who is thinking up these plans? The same guys who allow e-bikes and mopeds in our parks??

  Comment added September 8, 2023 7:04pm

• Rosemary Lane

  It is already crazy in the bike lane for regular cyclists contending with racing e-bikes. Now you want to add wide cargo e-bikes? This will be dangerous and no doubt they will also park in the bike lane to deliver with the usual lack of enforcement by NYPD

  Comment added September 8, 2023 9:07pm

• Izzy

  As a NYC resident and cyclist and I want to voice my strong opinion that these cargo bikes should not be permitted on sidewalks. E-bikes for food delivery services already clog bike lanes and sidewalks and further commercial use would only worsen the problem.

  Nonetheless, I see the environmental and safety benefits of these these cargo ebikes for use on the road. Their use should be confined to the road given their size when loads are taken into account. Otherwise, if permitted on sidewalks, I see only worsening safety for pedestrians.

  Comment added September 8, 2023 10:16pm

• Eric B

  It’s bad enough that we have to dodge unlicensed motorized bikes every time we want to cross at a traffic light, but now the New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) is considering the use of “larger pedal-assist cargo bikes” for what is called the “last mile delivery mode”??? Up to 10 x 4 feet on sidewalks? Is your department out of its mind?

  On the street, fine. On a pedestrian sidewalk, absolutely not.

  We now have NO safe place for pedestrians, for whom sidewalks were intended. Commercial delivery has taken over the city and, once again, diminishes our safety and quality of life. Please be reminded that citizens pay taxes too (and vote).

  PLEASE BLOCK THIS NEW RULE!

  Comment added September 8, 2023 10:36pm

• Isaac R

  I’m writing in support of the proposed rules and think DOT is doing the right thing to encourage use of cargo bikes for last mile deliveries.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 12:15am

• Dennis P Farley

  It is my belief that any pedal capable bicycle or any electrical assisted bicycle (Commercial and Privately Owned) that is operated by persons on the Public Streets, Avenues, Roads, Boulevards or Drives in the City of New York should be Licensed, Registered and Insured for “Personal Injury and Property Damage.
  The proliferation of roadway accidents involving these “Vehicles” makes it both wise and necessary to have the same type identification and accountability standards for their operations on the public roadways as do other roadway users.
  Children under 18 years of age should be limited to Operating “Pedal Only” nom-assisted bicycles should be limited to operation in Parks & Roadways only with adult Licensed and Insured Supervision.
  Riders/Supervisors should all be subject to the same safety standards that are required for the operation of Motorized Vehicles on the shared roadways of the City. If we REALLY want SAFETY as a prime concern, the Government should require the same type of DOT APPROVED “Crash Helmets” as they require for Motorcycle Operators, as BICYCLISTS are seated higher off the ground and more likely to suffer damage to their heads than Motorcyclists at the City’s speed limits.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 6:56am

• Gerald Grossman

  I strongly oppose an aspect of the rule that would allow pedal-assist commercial bikes to park on the sidewalk or to be on the sidewalk at any time. Does whoever proposed that portion of the rule live in NYC? Do they understand how difficult it is right now for a pedestrian to safely walk on our sidewalks (or to cross the streets)? Allowing more bikes to be on the sidewalks is complete madness.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 7:55am

• James

  As long as the commercial bicycle has legal commercial plates and is registered, and the cargo is of a certain size and weight, I support this decision. Any gas or electric cycle used for commercial should be registered but should also follow the rules and regulations of the road.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 9:16am

• M. Muller

  This is not good for pedestrians, the elderly, handicapped individuals, and other residents. Where are people supposed to walk. park their cars, etc. This City is on the “road” to becoming uninhabitable.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 11:45am

• Daniela Saltzman

  Creates a very unsafe environment for children and grownups trying to navigate sidewalks with strollers. BAD IDEA.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 12:00pm

• Mitchell J Burkowsky

  Sidewalks are for pedestrians, period.
  Not bicycles, not delivery minibikes.

  Keep the sidewalks for pedestrians.
  Let them park in the street

  Comment added September 9, 2023 12:14pm

• JILL LOOMIS

  Attention DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez:
  Thank you for efforts to reduce the number of large, high-polluting trucks on our streets. However, I object to authorizing the use of “larger pedal-assist cargo bikes” for what is called the “last mile delivery mode.”
  Understanding the commercial cargo bicycles are up to 10 feet long and 4 feet wide, they should not be permitted to park on the sidewalk.
  As an Upper West Side resident who walks all over the city, I see pedestrians challenged by strollers, personal shopping carts and skateboards, particularly when children riding skateboards hold hands with an adult. Please consider the safety of pedestrians, particularly people in wheelchairs and seniors using walkers.
  Thank you.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 12:19pm

• Karan Girotra

  Pedal assist bikes can go at speeds over 20 miles per hour. There are no safety rules or standards for their construction. Most such bikes are hacked and made by small, unlicensed vendors and are often imported from Asia.

  Allowing bikes to park or enter the sidewalk is a disastrous policy and will significantly endanger the lives of kids, older people, and all pedestrians. Sidewalks are for walking, not for parking, not for delivery vehicles, not for motor vehicles. Yes, these bikes are indeed motor vehicles.

  It’s shameful that the DOT would even consider such a rule. Has no one at the DOT ever walked on a NYC sidewalk?

  Shame!

  Comment added September 9, 2023 12:20pm

• cm

  We need something to replace the many many many delivery trucks spewing out pollutants into the air. However, cargo bikes, while in theory is a good replacement, as with everything the city passes, needs enforcement of the rules!!! Too many delivery persons ride up on the sidewalks now. What happens when you have larger bikes there. Yes, I know that your rule proposals say that pedal-assist commercial bikes may not be parked on sidewalk… except temporarily for the purpose of and while actually engaged commercially in loading and unloading property. THIS IS AN INVITATION FOR BIKES ON SIDEWALKS. NOOOOOO GOOOOOD!!
  Also, you will need to send delivery workers to some sort of transportation class so that they will understand and hopefully abide by the rules.
  AND ONCE AGAIN, PENALTIES MUST BE MADE AND RULES MUST BE ENFORCED IF YOU ALLOW THIS TO GO THROUGH.
  Whether it does or not, GET THOSE DELIVERY TRUCKS (and other motor vehicles) OFF OF OUR STREETS, illegally stopped, double-parked, in front of fire hydrants, running their motors sometimes for hours.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 12:30pm

• Cheryl Fusco

  I’m all for saving environment, but also for saving lives. UWS sidewalks have become dangerous for adults, young and old, children, pets. A free-for-all with no accountability when they create accidents, or sadly, fatalities. Now to add to that you want to take away more sidewalk space. Even if it’s just for 10 minutes it adds to the danger for pedestrians trying to walk the streets and live their lives. We need major bike laws that are strictly enforced, and until then we need the sidewalk space to try to get out of the way of motorized or peddled scooters and bikes that think they have the right of way.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 1:06pm

• Bonnie Raphael

  I’m definitely in favor of allowing commercial bikes and pedal assist bikes to use NYC public roadways. However, the following should be implemented:
  1. Widening all of the bike lanes OR adding another lane for ONLY motorized non-licensed vehicles. It would be easy enough to turn the parking lane currently adjacent to the bike lane into a lane for moterized non-licensed vehicles.
  2. Under no circumstances should these vehicles be allowed to operate on the sidewalk.
  3. Parking should be designated and used. AND under no circumstances should these vehicles have to park PERPENDICULAR to the cub as it says in Subdivision (p) of Section $-12 of Chapter 4 of Title 34 of the Rules of the City of New York: (8) Additional requirements for commercial (iii). At the very least the bikes should be PARRALEL to the sidewalk.
  34 All pedal assist bikes, including rentals and privately owned, should be registered with a city agency and have a registration number. That number should be required to be visible and readable on the vehicle.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 1:14pm

• MICHAEL MARC FALK

  Allowing large pedal delivery vehicles to use the public sidewalks for delivery/parking is not a good/intelligent/viable idea. Like all large delivery vehicles, it should be parked alongside the curb on the street. It will give cover to those delivery bikes/mopeds/scooters etc that now navigate and drive on sidewalks. Eliminate the unwarranted/undesirable restaurant sheds that are being permitted and reclaim the space for delivery.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 1:16pm

• jwilliams

  those large cargo bikes could be very dangerous for pedestrians, who may not be able to get around them on sidewalk, especially if pedestrian uses a walker or other mobility device!!
  this is just like parking on the sidewalk!!!

  Comment added September 9, 2023 1:37pm

• Judy Weinstein

  The sidewalks in my neighborhood, UWS, are already so congested. I am 83 and walk a lot for exercise and errands. Having these bicycles moving and parked on the sidewalks will be a real hazard for me.
  I also object to use of streets and sidewalks by business who pay no tax to operate distribution centers on public spaces.
  Thank You
  Judy Weinstein

  Comment added September 9, 2023 2:33pm

• Jan Lindemann

  According to the rules, these vehicles would be allowed to park on the sidewalk “temporarily” while making deliveries. That is a horrible idea. Our sidewalks are already overcrowded and often an obstacle course, making it difficult to walk, especially for seniors.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 2:43pm

• brian feltovich

  I heartily agree with this proposed change. Getting more box trucks off the streets is a very good thing. I understand some will probably complain that these proposed cargo bikes are too large for sidewalks, but they will be slow moving and mostly on sidewalks for parking and delivery only. Please allow this proposed change.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 2:45pm

• Ruchika Batwara

  Need to make the sidewalks and streets safer for New York City.
  Unless speed limits and traffic rules are enforced for anything that has a motor attached to it, please do not approve more of these “micro mobility” vehicles in the city. As a physician I can tell you that I see so many serious accidents happening from these illegal delivery vehicles.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 3:21pm

• Cory E. Friedman

  I regularly ride CitiBikes and other conventional human powered bikes in NYC’s protected and unprotected bike lanes. Anyone proposing allowing e-bike delivery vans is obviously unfamiliar with NYC’s bike lanes. The protected bike lanes are simply too narrow to allow these mini-delivery vans. Passing or being passed by them will be extremely dangerous as human powered bikes will be forced into collisions with curbs or the line of cars because of the speed differential. E-bike deliverymen ride in the bike lanes because they can go much faster than the cars and trucks in the traffic lanes and can ignore traffic lights. E-bike delivery vans should ride in the traffic lanes with the cars and trucks where they belong and leave the bike lanes alone.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 3:58pm

• Scott

  I support this proposal in principal, however, I am concerned about the parking clause which reads: “ (iv) A pedal-assist commercial bicycle may not be parked on a sidewalk, while attended or unattended, except temporarily for the purpose of and while actually engaged commercially in loading and unloading property.” This will allow these bikes to obstruct the sidewalks around the City, some of which are already narrow. Allowing these bikes to park on the sidewalk will impede People with Disabilities (particularly those who use walkers, crutches, and wheelchairs) from using the sidewalk on an equal basis with everyone else. I believe this rule should be removed entirely, or at least amended to require these vehicles to leave clearance for pedestrians (with and without disabilities) when parked.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 4:15pm

• AaronG

  Saddened and disheartened by the proposal. The LAST thing we need is more chaos from unregulated vehicles riding the wrong way on streets, blocking traffic, running over those too slow to dodge them, blocking the side walk, etc.. The notion that this is going to help the environment is ludicrous.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 4:24pm

• Karen Phillips

  Don’t let them on the sidewalks! There has to be a safe haven somewhere for pedestrians.

  If they are allowed on the sidewalk, even for just a momentary delivery, they will “drive” up onto the sidewalk. They will take space on the sidewalk.

  They are good idea, but let them park on the street and deliver packages as if they were from a truck.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 5:04pm

• Jane Epstein

  Pedal assist bikes are already a huge hazard for pedestrians in the city. I have come to think that getting hit by one is the way I’m going to die. They ride on sidewalks, they ride against traffic, they do not obey traffic controls… What not work on regulating these bikes, instead of expanding the class of the bikes to include more larger ones? Pedestrians really need some help to be safe walking around the city. Please help us.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 5:25pm

• Sheila

  Do NOT permit any bikes, esp cargo bikes, on the sidewalk.. commercial or otherwise..how this is even a proposal floors me…
  Stop this utter nonsense

  Comment added September 9, 2023 6:06pm

• B Reiser

  There doesn’t seem to be enough space on many sidewalks for bicycles and motorized bicycles, not to mention scooters, “sharing” the sidewalk with those using wheelchairs or with walkers.
  It is difficult for pedestrians–especially older pedestrians, or people with babies and younger kids, or anybody physically challenged–to get around this city, as it is now.
  You need to enforce current e-bike rules — off the sidewalks— and obeying traffic rules, like stopping for red lights—not adding vehicles for pedestrians to get around on sidewalks or past in the streets.

  Comment added September 9, 2023 8:06pm

• Miriam Bohbot

  While I applaud the efforts of NYC DOT to reduce emissions from trucks, I think crowding our sidewalks is wrong headed. Between the increased number of older people using rollators and little kids using scooters, not to mention the carelessness of bicycle delivery drivers, ours streets have become much less easy to navigate. Adding another element, and a much larger one, is too dangerous. We must protect our youngest and oldest citizens first. Find another way.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 6:53am

• Harriet Gozali

  NO pedal assisted commercial bikes ON SIDEWALKS for any reason or for any length of time. The hazards to pedestrians are obvious: obstructed passage and obstructed sight lines, and obstructed access to buildings.
  The environmental benefits are also obvious.
  But these bikes must be restricted to car lanes and parking spots .
  NOT a on sidewalks. NOT in bike lanes.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 7:43am

• Doug Garr

  This is a terrible idea. Please remember that the sidewalks were first conceived for pedestrians. They have been overtaken by bicycles and electric bikes who flaunt the traffic rules. These vehicles may achieve your goal of alleviating congested streets, but already crowded sidewalks will be made worse. Do you really think that they won’t cruise and disregard pedestrians? Oh, please. If you allow this, I want you to remind you of this comment when the first pedal-assisted commercial bicycle kills a pedestrian. It will happen.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 8:27am

• Tanay Jaipuria

  I’m supportive of these but they should be in the car lanes and not the bike lanes. The bike lanes are too narrow and already overrun with things that don’t belong (mopeds) and people biking the wrong way. Adding these to the bike lanes will lead to chaos.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 9:55am

• Lisa O

  No – The City should not be easing rules for commercial cargo bikes at all!
  The City should not be helping corporate Amazon and E-Commerce.
  The City should not be encouraging more wasteful E-Commerce.

  The City should be protecting pedestrians from bicyclists.
  The City should tax Amazon and other E-Commerce to discourage E-Commerce.
  The City should be helping local retail and businesses (which get no assistance from the City).
  The City should encourage people to walk and shop locally.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 10:09am

• Mary-Margaret Martin

  Please NO electric vehicles, scooters, bicycles or non-electric commercial bicycles on the sidewalks. They put our children in grave danger. They do not wall these electric vehicles while on the sidewalks and parents with strollers and young children, as well as seniors that cannot quickly move out of harm’s way are at RISK of injury or death. The sidewalks are already a risk with illegal vehicles. Please do not make this legal. Rather, please enforce the existing laws to make our sidewalks safer.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 10:34am

• Jon S

  These action means that the City of NY is officially approving use of bikes for commercial purposes by big corporations.

  Will the City ensure that e-commerce delivery bicycle workers are afforded basic health/safety/OSHA etc protection?
  For example protection from bicycling when it is too hot?
  Ensuring bathrooms and breaks?

  There are laws and requirements for delivery truck drivers – what are the City’s plans to ensure similar protection for e-commerce delivery bicycle workers?

  Comment added September 10, 2023 11:33am

• Cody Brandon

  I support this initiative

  Comment added September 10, 2023 1:36pm

• Rosamond Gianutsos

  I speak in strong support of allowing pedal-assist commercial e-bikes on NYC streets. This rule will help reduce the number of trucks making deliveries. Further, the DOT should convert free parking spaces to commercial loading zones where these vehicles can park while making deliveries. Sidewalks should be reserved for use by pedestrians and wheelchair users.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 3:50pm

• Charlie Todd

  I am very excited about the pedal assist cargo bike program. We have too many noisy, dangerous, and polluting trucks on our roads. However, I hope that these cargo bikes will park on the roadbed and not the sidewalk.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 4:25pm

• Renee Jeanne Arnold

  I am totally against the idea of cargo bikes in the bike lanes. It’s bad enough that it’s mostly delivery e-bikes from the likes of Doordash and Caviar, going the wrong direction and through red lights. Now those of us who want to use the bike lanes correctly to get around nyc have to also contend with cargo bikes?? Why don’t you fine these companies instead? And don’t even get me started with the pedestrians who take our lives in our hands trying to cross the bike lanes with these morons driving extremely fast and in the wrong direction. They just laugh when I call them on it. Absolutely NO, NO, NO to this proposed legislation.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 5:41pm

• S. Simon

  To Commissioner Rodriguez-

  I have been hit on the sidewalk near my home by an e-bike working for the delivery company GrubHub. The young man who hit me then proceeded to curse at me as I told him he wasn’t supposed to be riding on the sidewalk. I was unable to track who he was as he was unlicensed and unregistered. He had an orange GrubHub Bag on the back of his e-bike. I have lived in NY all my life and never been hit by a bike on a sidewalk. I am a over 65 and outraged that I can no longer walk safely on the sidewalk or in the street of my city. I have dodged e-bikes and e-scooters for the last 1.5 years who ride through lights while on their cell phones, ride the wrong way on streets, and ride on the sidewalks. I have almost been hit, til I was hit, a dozen times.
  Just after the Town Hall with the Mayor last week who agreed we needed to reign in e-vehicles, your office decided to do the opposite! I am astonished by your seeming indifference or ignorance as to what is going on on our streets. In your capacity as DOT Commissioner you are endangering the lives of the people you are supposed to protect. A good friend of mine has a traumatic brain injury because she was hit by an e-scooter in a crosswalk by an e-scooter who sped through a red light.

  I oppose in the strongest terms possible reclassifying e-vehicles which go 20-30 mph as “bicycles” which they certainly are not. And I oppose in the strongest terms possible E-Cargo Vans ever riding on our sidewalks. They are MOTORIZED VEHICLES and should travel if at all in the street in regular traffic and park in the street as well and then make their deliveries. They should never be on our sidewalks!
  If the safety of pedestrians, children, seniors, the disabled, the blind, and the hearing impaired are of no importance to the DOT and an agency of the City is in fact putting them in harm’s way, then it’s time to admit the agency is knowingly endangering the lives of the public, and ask that the leadership of this agency be changed immediately.

  Thank you.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 7:10pm

• Joel Geib

  I’m writing to express my disappointment that NYC DOT is seeking to change the rules regarding bike lanes to allow larger, four-wheel vehicles to use bike lanes. This will endanger (actual) cyclists and make cycling less appealing to New Yorkers.

  I do not want stopped delivery vehicles LEGALLY blocking bike lanes to make deliveries. Swerving out of bike lanes to get past them is going to inevitably lead to more collisions with motor vehicles.

  Already, bike lanes are dangerous due to zero enforcement of mopeds using bike lanes. 3-4 times a week, I bike across the Pulaski Bridge between Brooklyn and Queens commuting to work. I’ve already been considering stopping biking to work due to safety issues. Every single time I cross the bridge, at least 2-3 mopeds fly past cyclists at high speeds. They honk at cyclists and are angry when cyclists can’t make enough room for them to pass. They do not fit on the paths, because they are not bikes.

  UPS and Fedex can make smaller delivery vehicles better able to maneuver NYC streets without effectively ending bike lanes (…being for bikes) in the city. They already have electric trucks. The environmentally friendly changes are in no way dependent on this rule change.

  Cyclists are going to be seriously injured colliding with 4 wheeled delivery vehicles the same way they are being injured colliding with heavy mopeds today. I have zero trust in the police department to regulate 4 wheeled vehicles on bike paths. Why? They don’t regulate mopeds on bike paths today.

  I don’t know a single cyclist that thinks this would be a good idea. This would be a terrible change of rules that would would certainly result in reduced ridership and dead cyclists.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 7:35pm

• Angie Ohman

  I have a biker friend who broke her arm colliding with a moped in a bike lane. Large vehicles are a danger to bikers. I will not feel safe in bike lanes with 4 wheeled vehicles, pedal-assisted or not.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 8:00pm

• Martin Pons

  Please no.
  With lack of enforcement already for mopeds and e-bikes that exceed 20mph, this just opening up Pandora’s box even more.
  Make a space for them on the actual road.
  Bridges are going to be a disaster.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 8:03pm

• Sophie

  This makes no sense. Biking in NYC is already dangerous enough with only bikes in the bike lanes. There is no way a truck with a pedal for show should take up the entire bike lane and completely stop any flow of traffic in the lane. This should not be allowed in the bike lane, but one lane for traffic should be bus/electric truck enabled. We should be encouraging more people to bike (and get out of cars) and clogging a bike lane with more hazards is not the way to do this. Approve smaller EV trucks for the car lane.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 8:31pm

• Aaron Afran

  Opposed to this change. Cyclists should not be made to share space with large electric commercial vehicles in already limited and clogged bike infrastructure. Take another lane from the cars for commercial electric mopeds.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 8:38pm

• Jon S

  Continuing….
  The City should actually be taxing Amazon and try to reduce the use of wasteful e-commerce – not enabling more e-commerce delivery.
  Cargo bike delivery is a fake solution to addressing wasteful e-commerce.

  IF anything, cargo bikes must use bike lanes.
  Cargo bikes do not belong on the sidewalk.

  In fact, City DOT should be focusing on ensuring that Citibike, bikes, ebike, mopeds obey traffic rules and do not endanger pedestrians.
  My family and I are pedestrians (and bus and subway riders) and constantly menaced by Citibikers, racing bikers, mopeds etc.

  The bicycle lobby does not speak for me or my family!

  Comment added September 10, 2023 8:38pm

• Allegra N. LeGrande, PhD

  I love the idea of lightweight ‘cargo’ bikes. They will undoubtedly help NYC meet 30by30 50by50 and other ‘green’ targets. Plus, if they are electric, they will create less pollution. All positives.

  But these oversized cargo vehicles do not belong in bike lanes — which are already too narrow for cyclists. These vehicles, like ALL lightweight mobility devices, deserve their own set of lanes.

  Point-in-fact, I think NYC DOT should put a HARD WEIGHT LIMIT on the spectrum of vehicles that currently use the bike lane. I suggest 50 kg. Anything weighing more than that — one wheel, two wheel, electric, or otherwise— does NOT belong.

  These 50kg-250kg machines are less safe in car/truck lanes because the road designers in NYC have failed to provide for sufficient traffic ‘calming’ / speed preventing measures. To protect the operators of these kinds of vehicles, we need dedicated lightweight vehicle lanes.

  Probably DOT should consider removing parking spaces to make that happen.

  *Some other thoughts :: large vehicles decrease the ability of other riders to ‘see’ and stay vigilant on traffic (bike pedestrian and otherwise)
  *Delivery vehicles make frequent stops — these stops in bike lanes will force other users out of safe, car-hardened zones into dangerous car/truck traffic.
  —
  **NYC DOT, you are already on pace to kill dozens of cyclists this year.
  Aspire to be a force of POSITIVE change (that means, kill fewer cyclists).

  Comment added September 10, 2023 8:40pm

• Tom Lowe

  While the environmental and safety benefits are exciting, four feet wide with four wheels is a small truck not a cargo bike and will not fit most already narrow bike lanes. Hopefully if these vehicles are introduced and cargo volume shifts to bike lanes, we will see significantly more road space devoted to clean and safe transit options rather than shifting congestion to the transit mode with the fewest negative externalities.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 9:03pm

• Bret H

  I’m all for the.envrionmental and safety benefits of this, assuming the city anticipates the massive reaulting increase in “bike” traffic, and doubles the size of the existing bike lane network. Shouldn’t be hard to find the space, with all the delivery trucks that will be taken off the road!

  Comment added September 10, 2023 9:17pm

• Joshua N.

  Most bike lanes are already too narrow, congested, or otherwise unable to support the current use of bicyclists in the city. How much more if we expanded use to 4-wheel commercial bikes? While I support these vehicles as a means to reduce GHG-polluting trucks on our streets, they should operate in the streets with car traffic until a meaningful solution is implemented to expand our current bike lanes to meet the needs of our current cyclists.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 9:18pm

• RM

  The vehicles proposed in this amendment are not bicycles—they are 4-wheel miniature delivery vans. They don’t belong in the bike lanes, they shouldn’t be parked in bike lanes, and they shouldn’t be allowed to park on the sidewalk either.

  Our city’s bike lanes are meant to encourage cycling as a means of transport, especially for those who are less comfortable mixing with traffic. Given that we can’t even keep unregistered gas-powered mopeds and illegally parked vehicles out of them, why are we adding more potential hazards that will only increase everyone’s stress level and decrease overall safety for people on bikes?

  Actual e-assist cargo bikes do exist, and they can carry quite a lot of material very efficiently. If this measure were to support these actual cargo bikes, and mandate them to be used to some extent instead of full-size trucks in certain districts, I would be inclined to back it.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 9:20pm

• Philip Montgomery

  This is a terrible, unsafe idea that favors corporations over NYC citizens. Please remove this from consideration.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 9:21pm

• Brendan McGinley

  The bike lane is for bicycle transit, not stopped electrical commercial vehicles that block it. I’m all in favor of these vehicles reducing our emissions, but these will force cyclists into traffic, risking our lives and health. Let the delivery companies pull over elsewhere, or tax them for the privilege and directly use those funds to widen bike lanes to permit both.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 9:21pm

• Cindy Arroyo

  This is a terrible idea. Regular cars and trucks already do not follow rules related to the bike lanes throughout the city and this will only make it worse and more dangerous for riders on regular bicycles.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 9:24pm

• Jenna Adrian-Diaz

  A four-wheeled vehicle up to 48 inches wide, 78 inches tall, and 120 inches long is NOT a bicycle, it is a danger to the actual cyclists who rely on this infrastructure to get around a city that already allows delivery trucks, NYPD, and other New York City drivers to loiter in bike lanes and force cyclists into unsafe traffic patterns with oncoming motor vehicles. Many of the city’s bike lanes are 2-3 feet wide, meaning that actual cyclists will be forced to make more frequent hazardous traffic maneuvers into traffic to avoid these motor vehicles constantly stopping and otherwise overtaking the bike lanes. We already take our lives into our hands with DOT’s lack of enforcement on motorcycles, mopeds, and scooters going upwards of 25 miles per hour and endangering cyclist lives with barely any enforcement from the city, and allowing a compact sedan-sized vehicle to use bicycling infrastructure under the guise of being defined as a “cargo bike” will only add to the number of growing cyclist deaths and collisions that have risen to all time highs this year. I’m all for two-wheeled cargo bikes that my neighborhood residents use to haul their groceries home or take their kids to school, but as written, this legislation would allow motorized vehicles larger than a Fiat500 to use infrastructure that was not created to support such vehicles. Tell us, who comes out alive and unharmed in a collision where a driver of one of these compact sedan-sized vehicles that would be classified as a “cargo bike” makes a sudden stop without checking their mirrors or blind spots: the driver of the several-hundred pound vehicle, or the person on a 20-40 pound bicycle?

  Comment added September 10, 2023 9:29pm

• Ian Ulmer

  If the bike lane will be used for commercial deliveries, please widen the bicycle lanes.
  Thirty pound human-powered bicycles should be protected from heavy gas and electric conveyances.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 9:37pm

• Emily McVey

  I am a Brooklyn resident and I am voicing my opposition for allowing four wheeled delivery vehicles in NYC bike lanes. NYC bike lanes are already overwhelmed with e-bikes and scooters, which often create hazardous biking conditions for traditional cyclists. The addition of another motorized vehicle in the bike lane will increase risk for cyclists while also slowing down the ability to effectively travel using bike lanes. I hope the city will consider and alternative to accommodate the needs of delivery companies.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 9:41pm

• Barry Leybovich

  Hello! I want to note my concern in this rule change. Primarily, I’m worried that bike lanes will turn into UPS parking lanes and bicyclists will veer into traffic which will be dangerous for drivers and cyclists alike. Parking in bike lanes is a huge problem in the city, and you all don’t seem to be fixing it, but might be making it worse even. What ever happened to that blocked bike lane bounty program?

  Comment added September 10, 2023 9:45pm

• Matthew Fleischer

  The effect of this rule is to allow what would, but for the existence of pedals, be called “commercial trucks” into bike lanes. While I applaud DOT’s efforts to encourage commercial use of low emissions vehicles, this proposal will result in less useable bike lanes. As it currently stands, the City’s bike lanes are clogged with parked delivery trucks and illegal motor scooters. This proposal will only add to the problem. I suggest the DOT work to increase the width of bike lanes before adopting this proposal, or create separate lanes for these vehicles.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 9:51pm

• Dan

  As someone who bikes around the city for work often, this is a terrible decision. Why allow a company to take up space for the citizens that use these lanes for their needs?

  Comment added September 10, 2023 10:19pm

• Craig Mandel

  Adding additional VEHICLES that are 4 feet wide and expect to stop frequently would be a danger to cyclists using bike lanes. These lanes are already clogged with mopeds that are a danger to cyclists. Adding another element of danger to bike lanes would only furthered deteriorate the bike lane infrastructure put into place for people to BICYCLE safely.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 10:24pm

• Tom Reingold

  I fully agree that narrow delivery vehicles will improve traffic. They might also improve delivery times and reliability. But I feel strongly that they do not belong in bike lanes. Bike lanes are quickly reaching capacity and need to be widened. We need protection in bike lanes from various types of vehicles so that the original mission of the lanes can be fulfilled which is personal transportation. General travel lanes (where any kind of vehicle can be) should have less space allocated on many streets, especially in Manhattan, and it’s time to consider new kinds of specialized lanes such as lanes for small commercial vehicles, Class 3 ebikes, and motorcycles.

  Allowing a 4-foot-wide vehicle in a bike lane will lead to leaving them stationary when making deliveries. This will thoroughly block the lane. These entirely subverts the purpose of bike lanes, and it will create intense dangers from cyclists veering out into general traffic lanes.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 10:25pm

• Bernard Goyder

  I am a regular cyclist living in Uptown Manhattan. I think the proposed amendment to the traffic rules is reckless and will cause harm.

  The vehicles described as ‘commercial bicycles’ in the proposal will endanger both cyclists and pedestrians, given that at 48 inches they will take up the entire width of a bike lane, pushing cyclists into traffic and making it more likely that bikes will appear in places where pedestrians are not expecting them.

  New York City’s cycling infrastructure is already clogged with e-bikes and motorized scooters. The last thing we need are small vans masquerading as bicycles, to the benefit of large delivery companies and their corporate customers. I think these vehicles are inappropriate and unsafe for use in the City’s narrow bike lanes. I support the introduction of electric delivery vehicles of all kinds to make New York a greener city, but they should use the roadway like other kinds of commercial vehicle.

  I don’t have a problem with two-wheeled e-bikes pulling small trailers using bike lanes, but the commercial bicycles described in the proposal are far too big for use in a narrow and busy urban bike lane.

  Finally, delivery vans operating in New York State must have commercial auto insurance. Are the proposed commercial bikes going to be insured? What happens if they run someone over?

  The proposal feels like a way for delivery companies to manoeuvre around their legal obligation to insure their fleet, just as I will have to navigate around these trundling behemoths in New York City’s bike lanes if this proposal is carried.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 10:33pm

• Mark J Villanueva

  Vehicles that take up the full width of the bike line have the potential to block the bike lane. Commercial vehicles already block traffic and bike lanes with impunity, this will likely make protected bike lanes unusable and defeat the safety goals of bike lanes.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 10:53pm

• Ryan

  Riding a bike is become less and less safe and these lanes are endlessly clogged with everything that’s NOT a bike. Please help keep bikers who use bike lanes safe by not passing this and please do everything possible to keep motorized vehicles out of the bike lanes.

  If the concern is about environmental friendliness there are may other ways to limit congestion and hey, fixing up the trains might help too..

  Comment added September 10, 2023 10:57pm

• Samer Masri

  To the DOT,

  I writing in desperate opposition to this proposed rule change. If you make this change, people will die, and you will bear the responsibility.

  There are currently a great many official bicycle lanes in the city as narrow as five feet in total, including the Queensboro bridge, and many bike lanes which are protected on both sides by concrete barriers, as I have directly measured. This means that these cargo vehicles on bike lanes will simply be unable to pass each other riders of any type of bicycle or scooter. They are also tall and wide, so when cyclists inevitably attempt to pass, they will do so blindly and potential cause head on collisions. Cargo electric vehicles will increase the rate of accidents and injury for cyclists and moped riders (despite the fact that those are narrower, and still not allowed in bike lanes officially). As a daily bicycle commuter currently sharing the bike lanes with electric and gas powered scooters/mopeds, which are under three feet wide, and still cause great risk. I was recently hit and injured on the flushing avenue bike lane as a moped sped by and pushed me into a concrete barrier when there was not enough for us both. The addition of thousands of electric and gas powered mopeds to the bike lanes already cause injuries daily in NYC and have overcrowded the bike lanes, please don’t make it worse.

  While these vehicles are environmentally friendly, they or better variants of them can still be used on normal roads. There is absolutely no reason cargo delivery needs to be relegated to the bike lane. Doing this would provide 100% of the environmental and safety benefit of smaller electric vehicles, but will not pose risks to riders.

  I urge you to consider the lives that will be put at risk by making this change before considering the safety risks.

  Sincerely,
  Dr. Samer Masri

  Comment added September 10, 2023 11:00pm

• Amy Obermeyer

  These alleged “cargo bikes” are no such thing, but are rather small electric cars turning the bike lanes into dedicated delivery lanes for private corporations. They will make the bike lanes functionally unusable for cyclists, the roads and bike lanes more deadly, and further suppress micromobility use.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 11:04pm

• Taylor DeCelles

  This is detrimental to anyone who actually uses the bike lane to commute around the city. Cyclists are already under threat from powerful, high-speed mopeds and motorcycles that illegally use the bike infrastructure with impunity. Wide delivery vehicles, making frequent stops, in narrow bike lanes (I have zero confidence that the infrastructure will be expanded to adequately accommodate these vehicles and cyclists) will add to what is an already dangerous situation. Robust cycling infrastructure is vital to the safety, health, and liveability of this city. Please do not diminish an already imperfect system.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 11:06pm

• Debbie C

  Thank you, this seems like a great way to ease traffic and reduce emissions.

  But these huge vehicles must NOT be allowed to ever park on a sidewalk. Sidewalks are already congested with pedestrians, and already dangerous with e-bikes, scooters and other vehicles which are not supposed to be there. This rule already includes plenty of street spaces where these vehicles can park and load/unload. You know that there is no way to delineate when they exceed the temporary purpose of loading and unloading on the sidewalk, and that they will just sit there, with no police or traffic enforcement, like trucks do in bike lanes and elsewhere. The only way to prevent this is to prohibit these vehicles from ever being on the sidewalk. They are too big, and will endanger pedestrians when moving, and will block whole sections of the sidewalk when parked, and force pedestrians to go into the street to go around them. This is just an unacceptable proposal.

  Therefore, please delete from the rule the last part of the following section, as indicated in brackets:
  “§6. (iv) A pedal-assist commercial bicycle may not be parked on a sidewalk, while attended or unattended, [DELETE: except temporarily for the purpose of and while actually engaged commercially in loading and unloading property.]”

  Thank you!

  Comment added September 10, 2023 11:12pm

• Andrew P Anderson

  The only way this will work is if every bike lane is converted to be 12+ ft like in Asia.

  Other than that this will render cycling for commuters impossible, on top of the massive difficulty with mopeds and delivery drivers.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 11:13pm

• David

  I strongly support the idea of expanding commercial bike operations in the city. However, they absolutely cannot be allowed in existing bike lanes and must be required to ride on the road. Our existing bike lane network is already strained and not nearly safe enough to accommodate existing bikers. Protected bike lanes all around the city are clogged with speeding gas-powered mopeds, parked cars and/or barely allow more than one person biking in one direction. There needs to be a clear separation between commercial and other use unless commercial operators are required to pay tolls/fees for using public infrastructure (that pays for larger and more protected bike lanes).

  Comment added September 10, 2023 11:21pm

• Jessie

  I am strongly opposed to this rule change. These vehicles will pose a hazard to cyclists. They are highly likely to stop in lanes, pushing bikes into dangerous traffic while blocking visibility. (This seems obvious given how often regular delivery trucks park/idle in bike lines and how onerous it will be to maneuver these vehicles out of many bike lanes during deliveries, especially under the time pressures delivery workers face.) They will also clog already narrow and congested bike lanes. I am in favor of looking for ways to transition to these vehicles to reduce the number of trucks on our streets but putting the burden of this on our already inadequate cycling infrastructure is dangerous and short-sighted. Converting more car traffic or parking lanes to accommodate these type of vehicles would be great. As it stands, this is basically yet another subsidy to private companies at the expense of ordinary New Yorkers.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 11:26pm

• Erica V DePiero

  I support trying alternative methods for last-mile delivery. Perhaps we could also have designated delivery-stage areas by simply taking back a few parking spots rather than allowing large trucks to shut down one full lane of a major avenue. I feel like those two changes alone would greatly relieve congestion in the streets for car traffic.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 11:29pm

• Anthony Morena

  Terrible idea, terrible use of bike infrastructure, and likely to injure or even jeopardize the lives of New York bike riders and others on the road.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 11:41pm

• Hannah

  As important as the environment is, the city’s bicycle infrastructure is simply not ready for this rule change. As a regular cyclist commuter, I would not feel safe with wider, four-wheeled vehicles in the bike lanes, which are already frequently partially obstructed by debris or parked vehicles. I also don’t trust drivers of four-wheeled vehicles to have sufficient empathy with cyclists to be able to operate safely around them. Plus I can’t imagine drivers of these things are going to exit the bike lane to park, which is going to lead to even more situations where I have to exit the bike lane and bike with traffic to get around a stopped vehicle. For the sake of cyclist safety, please do not allow these vehicles in bike lanes.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 11:43pm

• Matthew Masi-Phelps

  I frequently commute by bike, often over the Queensborough Bridge. The bridge and other bike lanes are already too narrow for existing bike traffic. Adding oversized golf carts with pretend pedals will make bike lanes less safe for people on actual bikes. Additionally, delivery trucks are known for parking in bike lanes, forcing cyclists to divert into car lanes, risking safety. I have no doubt that the operators of these large golf carts will frequently be parking them in bike lanes as they make deliveries with no regard for the people on actual bikes. These vehicles are not bikes, and this new policy will threaten the safety of actual bike users.

  Comment added September 10, 2023 11:46pm

• Michael Giglia

  These vehicles are going to clog up bike lanes everywhere when they make deliveries. This will cause bikers to have to either go into oncoming bikers or go into where car traffic is. NYC bike lanes are already not safe because they’re painted and provide no true barrier between multi ton vehicles. Now you’re going to put commercial vehicles that frequently stop in these lanes? Where’s the common sense and empathy to pedestrians and cyclists? Why are you still developing urban areas for the car? And now this? Where’s the common sense? Maybe remove cars from main areas and have deliveries go on the now open streets. Stop developing the city this way and put some effort for the people who live here please

  Comment added September 10, 2023 11:51pm

• Ben Dukoff

  I support allowing the pedal assist “bicycles,” however there should be increased enforcement of other non-bikes that clog up the bike lanes and make it unsafe for riders. The bike lanes are not service lanes for uber and moving trucks.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 12:06am

• John Crisan

  This is an insanely stupid idea. Granting COMMERCIAL VEHICLES access to bike lanes is a sure fire way to destroy our already barely adequate cycling infrastructure. Whoever is pushing this ought to be ashamed for letting themselves get rolled by FedEx & UPS. Bike lanes are for residents, period.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 12:14am

• Steven Bodzin

  Hooray for more bike cargo systems of all types.

  Do NOT, NOT, NOT, allow these in bike lanes. Bike lanes are already overwhelmed with traffic. On lanes like 1st and 2nd Ave uptown, there is constant conflict faster cyclists and ebike users push past slower cyclists.

  A 48-inch-wide, motorized, 4-wheel car will only add to this chaos. It belongs out in the mixed-traffic lanes.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 12:39am

• Jake Lloyd

  Once you allow these vehicles in bike lanes that the NYPD are already NOT keeping clear the only two areas us cyclists will have left are the regular lanes and sidewalks. So once you get this passed don’t come whining about us cyclists taking lanes in front of your cars or going up on the sidewalk to pass.

  Us cyclists are all for micro mobility and green transport, but putting these in the bike lanes is just a dumb idea.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 12:42am

• Gavin

  While this proposed rule in its current form would bring several benefits in relieving some road congestion and reducing carbon emissions, I cannot support it because it will have negative consequences on the usability of existing bike lanes. The plan includes allocation of “Commercial Bicycle Loading Only” zones, but it does not seem likely that they will be used as intended to load and unload. Firstly, the plan does not specify how widespread these loading zones would be, and whether they will be conveniently located. Secondly, given how often NYC drivers park in the bike lane, the bus lane, the crosswalk, etc., and how seldom and loosely existing rules are enforced, one would reasonably expect the allocated spots to be occupied by motor vehicles. This will very likely result in “commercial bicycles” stopping and unloading wherever they like in the bike lane, where their width will take up the whole lane, forcing other cyclists into traffic. This would increase the risk of collisions and endanger cyclists. Because enforcement is unreliable, the city must come up with additional measures to ensure proper and safe usage of bike lanes. This rule may be viable with improvements to the existing infrastructure. For example, the city could strengthen bike lane protection, e.g. by adding hard bollards. They could also allocate an additional lane for bikes in order to accommodate the influx of commercial traffic. I would be more supportive of this rule if NYC were more bike-friendly to begin with.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 12:57am

• Miguel V

  I am not interested in having delivery or any other type of commercial companies clogging up the bike lanes. This will make the bike lane unsafe and hard to drive, not just for frequent riders, but new riders as well! It is hard enough to get through the city without having these additional inconveniences on top of it. It doesn’t add any value to the city, except for making more money for these companies!

  Comment added September 11, 2023 1:46am

• Henry Downs

  Bike lanes already face the dangerous and pervasive issue of cars and trucks using the bike lane like a parking lane. Adding more trucks that make frequent stops in the bike lane is dangerous and selfish. The leading cause of cyclist deaths is when cyclists are forced out into traffic to avoid obstacles in the bike lane. The delivery vehicles sound like a nice idea, as long as they are in the lane where cars go. Because that’s what they are. They’re cars. The pedals don’t change that and we are not fooled by it.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 2:50am

• Daniel De Lange

  This is not a good idea. This will block bike lanes with what are essentially electric trucks. Bike lanes are already chaotic and dangerous enough with all the e-bike, moped, etc delivery drivers free to zoom through them with no consequence. Putting the burden of delivery on our narrow bike lanes doesn’t make sense when there’s far more space devoted to cars that should be used. Anyone who actually rides a bike in NYC would not want this implemented.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 4:18am

• BP

  This rule change to allow motorized vehicles in bike lines is extremely concerning and would defeat the purpose of the bike lanes. A perfect example of how this will pan out is the lower portion of Central Park. On any weekend you can see congestion and crashes caused by the shared pedi-cab bikelane. These vehicles have an ability to accelerate and decelerate much quicker due to their motor assistance than a cyclist, and unlike e-scooters they’re massive and difficult to maneuver around when they stop to allow tourists to take photos and answer questions. by moving forward with this rule change NYC DOT would be putting commuter cyclists and the delivery cyclist that rely on a dedicated lane at risk by adding motorized vehicles that would be making frequent stops. These motorized vehicles should use the road like all other trucks and should be fined when in the bike lane accordingly.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 4:33am

• Matthew Grandin

  I do not support this rule as it allows small commercial electric trucks into bicycle lanes. Calling these “bicycles“ is quite a stretch. It is a four wheeled vehicle powered by an electric motor. The inclusion of pedals on these vehicles is simply a gimmick to allow mini electric trucks access to bicycle lanes and avoid vehicle registration costs and tickets. I am not against the operation of these vehicles in New York City, but it will be unsafe for real bicycle traffic in dedicated bicycle lanes. One safety advantage of bicycles is they are lightweight an offer a lot visibility and situational awareness for the rider. Four wheeled cargo carrying vehicles that are 48 inches wide will block the bike lane and block the operators view of what’s going on around them and block other bicycle traffics view as well. Furthermore, the weight of these vehicles will far exceed the weight of a normal bicycle and rider and contribute to more damaging collisions. NYCDOT should only allow these vehicles if they are required to operate in the motor vehicle lane (because as described, they are a electric motor powered vehicle). This would allow parcel carrying companies to continue to move forward on their green initiatives, and will still afford traffic reduction because the width of the vehicles is much less than current parcel carrying gas operated vehicles which are frequently double parked.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 5:34am

• Roger Cox

  The entire purpose of bike lanes is to get them out of the way of traffic, both moving and stopped. The proposed vehicles will inevitably block entire blke lanes, forcing cyclist back out into traffic. Who does this benefit other than UPS and other delivery services. A profoundly ill-conceived proposal.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 5:57am

• Samer Lachowski

  4 feet wide is gonna clog up the entire lane and will force cyclists into the street. We have mopeds all up and down risking cyclists and now the city is introducing this. Stupid stupid stupid. How many more bike related accidents do we want?

  Comment added September 11, 2023 6:30am

• Andrew Goldstein

  As a doctor, public health professional, and cyclist, this rule change is extremely dangerous and inappropriate. These vehicles have speeds and weights that risk serious injury to cyclists through direct crashes with them, and more commonly are so large that they limit bike lane visibility resulting is more frequent unsafe scenarios. Lastly, their width is so large as to obstruct the bike lane, their drivers lack visibility with bikes behind them, and they very commonly do swerve unsafely. This proposed rule change is unacceptable – it will result in deaths and injuries, and will cause chaos on limited bike lane space.

  These vehicles may be good from a logistics and environmental perspective, so the best path forward is for them to exist and be encouraged, but for them to be in separate space from cyclists. For now that should be the road, but ultimately alternative lanes should be created specifically for high weight, high speed vehicles like motorbikes and pedal assist commercial vehicles.

  Andrew Goldstein, MD, MPH
  Assistant Professor, NYU School of Medicine

  Comment added September 11, 2023 6:35am

• Dave Johnson

  While I fully support the introduction of pedal-assist commercial vehicles, I would hope that this would reinforce the need for more traffic lanes dedicated to alternative vehicles and reducing the number of lanes devoted to private cars.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 6:38am

• Scott

  If use of these vehicles in lanes designated for the safe use of bicycles is approved, it will make the conditions for bicyclist far more dangerous than it is currently. These vehicles should only be approved for use in the street, exclusive of bike lanes.
  Whole Foods & Amazon were doing something very similar, using e-bikes with very wide trailers for a period of time, and I’ve never seen such so many injuries in such a short time.
  If the DOT approves this change with use of bicycle lanes, it will be in full and transparent admission that the city operates on behalf of corporate financial interests first, and the safety of city citizens second, or worse.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 6:48am

• Mandi

  While I fully support the notion of smaller vehicles for delivery, and I guess they are cargo bikes in a sense, they belong in the car lane. Putting large mobiles that are NOT bicycles (can you even call them a cargo bike??) in 3ft wide bike lanes is so unbelievably dangerous it’s like the DOT is wanting the number of cyclist deaths to rise! Opening the bike lane to these vehicles is an abhorrent policy, what with mopeds and scooters already being a blight and causing injury to cyclists and further diminishing the little joy left in riding around the city, going forward with this policy the DOT would be endorsing putting cyclists at risk.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 7:17am

• ryan lee phillips

  I am a bicycle commuter and pleasure cyclist. I think this rule would only make the situation worse fos cyclists like myself. The bike lanes have become increasingly crowded with faster moving and unpredictable commercial e-bike riders, mopeds, and other electric vehicles.

  Furthermore, four-wheeled pedal assist vehicles are not bicycles:

  https://electrek.co/2023/08/14/wide-load-extra-thick-four-wheeled-electric-cargo-bikes-to-replace-trucks-in-new-york/

  Comment added September 11, 2023 7:24am

• John

  I’m a regular cyclist (commute Brooklyn to Manhattan 2x a week) and I’m fine with this, EXCEPT I think you should ban them from the bridges, at least to start. If it’s truly “last mile” delivery these bikes are being used for, this won’t be a problem. Bridge bike paths are busy, high-speed settings where illegal moped and scooter use is common. If someone tries to pass a boxy commercial e-bike, they’ll have less visibility before going around and face a higher risk of a crash.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 7:42am

• Cyan

  I fully support it. Fewer trucks off the road would be great. But other people should be allowed to use these “bikes” as well, not only companies, so we can get to the point of having fewer cars. Also, the bike lane size needs to be increased to accommodate cyclists so we can safely pass. We should be trying to make roads safer for smaller vehicles like mopeds that can’t keep up with traffic by creating their own lane aside from the bike lane. NYC should be a pedestrian city, not a car city.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 7:44am

• Michael Griffiths

  As a cyclist, homeowner, and parent to two young children – I strongly support commercial four wheeled cycles which are much safer for our streets than large gas vehicles

  Comment added September 11, 2023 7:52am

• Bryan Gant

  I oppose the idea of allowing commercial vehicles to repurpose bike lanes into delivery lanes — an idea that over-benefits drivers while effectively ending the utility of bike lanes in some areas.

  The idea of replacing trucks with smaller vehicles is a good one, which—if it was left at that—would benefit drivers but also benefit cyclists and pedestrians. Drivers would have more space, for example, simply because the vehicles would take up less room, and cyclists and pedestrians would face lower emissions and somewhat fewer risks from trucks.

  However, these are effectively electric cars, not bikes. They are way too wide to fit in existing bike lanes without endangering other users — they would be virtually the same dimensions as the Kei Truck in Japan, i.e., a truck, not a bike. And they do not drive like bikes but rather cars. The pedals on these things are like turn signals on a BMW — they’re for regulatory reasons and little else — and slapping pedals on an electric truck does not make it a bicycle.

  But instead of leaving those smaller vehicles in the road, where they belong, the proposal then tacks on an additional benefit to drivers at an extreme cost to cyclists and pedestrians. Under the proposal, drivers would be gifted even more space than they already have—and they already have the great majority of the space—while cyclists would have their lanes turned into delivery lanes and pedestrians would have their sidewalks turned into parking spaces. Smaller delivery vehicles can exist in car lanes; if drivers can cope with massive trucks blocking two out of three lanes on Columbus, they can certainly cope with small vehicles blocking half of one lane instead. But instead this proposal clears all three lanes for cars at the cost of stealing the tiny space allocated for bikes and pedestrians. (Ironically, this also will tend to have the effect of causing more speeding, harming pedestrians, because of less traffic.)

  Indeed, the reality of this proposal is that someone is going to have to use the roadway. These delivery vehicles stop frequently and are impossible to pass in bike lanes — they effectively make the bike lanes impassable. If you block the bike lanes, the cyclists will have to go back to riding with the cars (or onto the sidewalk, which is even worse). If you block the sidewalks, the pedestrians will have to walk in the street. The proper group to have in the street is the delivery vehicles.

  I oppose this proposal and encourage the DOT to reject it as proposed. However, if the vehicles were kept out of bike lanes I would support it wholeheartedly.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 7:57am

• Robert Campbell

  As a regular bicycle commuter I cannot endorse this regulation. Already bike lanes are overrun by private delivery vehicles that fail to respect traffic regulations and pose a threat to the safety and well-being of many cyclists. Without proper enforcement of the rules of the road, adding larger vehicles will only make the situation more dangerous. Passing at high speeds, aggressively tailing slower (pedal powered) vehicles and wrong way riding have become all too comon. Indeed, given the propensity of drivers for delivery services such as FedEx and UPS to parking anywhere regardless of rules or even tickets -who has not seen a delivery van with numerous tickets on the windshield- the current lawless atmosphere will render the bike lanes unusable for bicycles. Until the city gets serious about enforcing existing regulations expanding access should be rejected.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 8:09am

• John

  Replacing NYC’s dependence on cars & trucks with lighter, safer, greener alternatives is a must for our city.

  However adding wide, commercial, frequently stopping, power-assisted, delivery traffic to bike lanes simply moves a congestion problem from the street to the bike lane. Essentially adding hazards to the bike lane to improve the flow of cars and trucks.

  Our current biking infrastructure has already become unsafe due to unenforced of traffic and parking laws, increased delivery traffic, gas powered motorcycles using bikes lanes, and restaurants shelters spilling into the bike lanes.

  If this proposal will reduce traffic, then remove a lane from traffic to either drastically increase the width and safety of bike lanes to accommodate navigating around wider commercial vehicles, or create a lane for smaller powered/power-assisted vehicles that are clearly not bicycles.

  Adding more hazardous commercial traffic to a failing bike infrastructure will lead to more collisions, injuries, and fatalities.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 8:13am

• zak hersheys

  We should be encouraging pedal-assist commercial bikes, but we CANNOT ALLOW THEM IN BIKE LANES. Bike lanes are narrow and already crowded; we’re already seeing all kinds of motorized scooters and even motorcycles take over our bike lanes, threatening the safety of people using regular bikes and discouraging non-car travel. These pedal-assist commercial bikes are much better than usual delivery vehicles but do not belong in bike lanes. To encourage their use, maybe we can take away a traffic lane and devote it to pedal-assist commercial bikes.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 8:19am

• Caroline Tarnok

  Please DO NOT ALLOW these vehicles. I am a daily user of bike lanes, on my regular bicycle (non electric). I am in daily fear for my life as (1) high-mass vehicles, mopeds, etc. use the bike lanes and (2) bike lanes are blocked forcing me into traffic.

  These wide vehicles would make (2) even worse.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 8:24am

• Josh

  I am against this rule change. The bicycle lanes are there to provide bicyclists safe paths in this city, and these vehicles would take up an entire bike lane, forcing bikes into traffic. And what would they do when making a delivery? They will park in the bike lane. Please do not make bicycling even more dangerous in this city.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 8:25am

• George Locker

  Why doesn’t DOT enforce NYC Administrative Code Title 10 – Public Safety, Chapter 1, section 10-157, 10-157.1 (commercial delivery bikes)?

  You have a law regulating commercial delivery bikes and you ignore it. Shameful, lazy, incompetent … a disservice to all New Yorkers .. Mr. Pinchar – do your job!

  Comment attachment
  commercial-bicyclist-safety-poster42.pdf

  Comment added September 11, 2023 8:39am

• Gernot Wagner

  Impassioned NYC cyclist here (sans driver’s license/car), with 2 kids who scoot to school daily using bike lanes (shepherded by my wife and myself, both on folding bikes). I wholeheartedly support the rule to use pedal-assist commercial bicycles in bike lanes.

  Key, of course, is to actual enforce having backe lanes for bikes (pedal-assist or not) and not for TLC vehicles, delivery trucks, or, worst, private cars.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 8:40am

• Mark Genovesi

  I love the idea of smaller, electric and human-powered delivery vehicles. The problem is that our bike lanes are too small to accommodate both bicycle traffic and these pedicabs. This bill must be paired with a requirement to make bike lanes at a minimum twice the allowed commercial pedal-assisted bicycle width.
  If cars have more than one lane with commercial traffic, bicycles must also have the option to pass parked commercial bicycles.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 8:44am

• Chris

  NO Pedal-Assist-Commercial-Bicycles on the sidewalks EVER!

  Okay to have them in the streets, but NOT on the sidewalk.

  And, now that I think of it (as a very frequent biker) not in bike lanes either.

  Let’s move into the future and create lanes just for eco-friendly delivery similar to bike lanes. Sorry cars — you deserve less of our space.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 8:47am

• Will Douglas

  If I put four wheels on a horse, can I ride it on the highway? These are not “cargo bikes”. They have four wheels, motors, and an enclosed cab.

  There have been a number of bloody crashes involving mopeds and other large, heavy vehicles in bicycle lanes recently, and this new rule is counter-productive.

  Bicyclists have enough to deal with considering the influx into bike lanes of unregistered mopeds and other motor vehicles, without the city condoning the dangerous practice of driving large, heavy motor vehicles in narrow bike lanes.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 8:47am

• Sarah Cravens

  I envision that these vehicles will frequently stop in bike lanes, creating a dangerous situation for cyclists who then have to travel out into car traffic lanes to get around them. How diligently will rules applicable to these vehicles be enforced?

  Comment added September 11, 2023 8:49am

• John Kim

  Please do not go through with this. We should be reducing automobiles in the bike lanes, not increasing them. They are a hazard for cyclists and may lead to fatal accidents as bikes will have to go around them into traffic or on the sidewalk.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 9:00am

• Ben Ferber

  These vehicles that claim to be bicycles are essentially trucks. They do not belong in bike lanes as they will constantly be stopped in them, completely obstructing bike traffic. There’s already a huge problem with full sized delivery vehicles parking in bike lanes, which has essentially gone unaddressed. This will vastly exacerbate that problem.

  Loading zones are the solution to this problem, not clogging bike lanes with parked delivery trucks.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 9:01am

• Kevin shand

  Do not enact this rule change, it is a step backward. Putting car-like vehicle in the bike lanes is unsafe from a visibility and traffic flow standpoint. An absolutely idiotic giveaway to corporations at the expense of people. Show some backbone please.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 9:01am

• AKSHAY PATEL

  This is a horrible idea. Amazon will clog the bike paths and make them basically unusable.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 9:07am

• Alexander Klebnikov

  I write in opposition to this rulemaking. The bike infrastructure of NYC has improved dramatically for me over the last 10 years – I now bike over 10 miles to work every day from Manhattan to Brooklyn, and credit it with substantial quality of life inprovements from health/excercise to mental health, to ease of access. I am a late 20s NY resident with extensive road, city, and ebiking experience.

  Solving the last mile delivery problem, via smaller, right sized vehicles is a great idea in principle. However the impact of adding 48″ wide four wheeled vehicles in the existing bike infrastructure/lanes will have a material and substantially negative impact on my usage of the system as well as the usage of many of my peers. As such, I strongly suggest the NYDOT revise its proposed lawmaking.

  The climate benefits of moving from ICE powered delivery trucks to cargo bikes are excellent, commendable and should be strongly supported. However, with the current state of the bike infrastructure in NYC, adding such vehicles will quickly erode the growing trust in the system by the casual and commuting public. Until we have double width bike lanes in a much higher density, adding such large vehicles will have a dramatic negative effect on existing bicycle lane users, both in comfort, access and safety.

  Motorized scooters and class 3 ebikes are already a major deterant for increased bicycle usage/uptake both for myself and for many friends. Having vehicles that have dramatically different driving profiles in terms of speed, turning radius, width and parking causes risks to people of both beginner and advanced bicycling skills. Indeed, I forsee many advanced bikers avoiding a bike lane with a cargo bike and moving into the roadway, while beginners will move onto the sidewalk, both which have safety implications.

  There is research (UK DESNZ, Brand et al, etc) that increased biking/ebiking is among (or is) the strongest policy tool to reduce CO2 from transit. Putting delivery cargo bikes in the roadway and civilians in bike lanes achieves both of these objectives. Well regulated, trained delivery drivers with purposefully designed cargo bikes can more safely integrate with car/truck traffic then regular bicyclists.

  The premise of NYDOT policy and rule making should be predicated on three core principles – increase access, increase convenience and increase safety. This proposed rule reduces all three. The climate, reduced delivery costs and reduced car traffic implications are commendable, but far outweighed by the increased burden on commuting and casual public using the bike lanes.

  In 4-8 years when bike infrastructure has improved per NYDOT masterplan, and NY has a higher proportion of comfortable bicycling commuters, this proposed rule may have more merit. Today, it is not a safe or effective proposal.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 9:31am

• Stephanie M

  As a daily cyclist in this city, I oppose this change to bike lane rules. These are vehicles are four feet wide with four wheels. They are small trucks, not a cargo bike and will not fit most already narrow bike lanes. Paired with what will be frequent stops, this proposal will push bikers out of the lanes and into traffic. An approved cargo bike allows the rest of bike traffic to see around the cargo bike and move around. Commercial bicycles are boxy and have no visibility.

  Cyclists in this city already deal with trucks and delivery workers improperly using the bike lane as parking and loading spaces. We are forced to maneuver around commercial vehicles that block traffic, obstruct views, and put us in danger. This proposal shows that the city would rather prioritize corporate interests than the safety of commuters who want to be safe in their designated bike lane.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 9:45am

• Franklin Mooney

  If bicycle lane usage is to be expanded to include more and larger vehicles, the bicycle lanes should be expanded to allow for these vehicles to be safely passed. In addition, the bicycle lane should be used to flowing traffic. Any vehicles, including pedal assisted, that stop in the late force bicycles out into traffic, causing a dangerous situation. Any commercial vehicle parked in the bicycle lane should receive a fine commiserate with endangering others.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 9:52am

• anna han

  i am against any motorized bicycle to be allowed on our bike lanes. the bike lanes are already dangerous for cyclists in the city, with numerous obstructions and motorized bikes speeding through the lanes.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 10:05am

• George

  While these smaller more environmentally friendly vehicles may be a better choice for last mile delivery, they should not be included in the bike lanes. The bike lanes are already clogged enough without allowing them to be filled with last mile trucks. Even at 20 mph, the extra mass of this vehicle will do untold damage to more vulnerable users of the bike lanes. Bike lanes are already used to double park by every entitled or over worked person in a 4 wheeled vehicle. No doubt these vehicles will stop right in the lane and cause problems. We should still consider these vehicles, but keep them with other large moving vehicles in the main traffic lanes, not the bike lanes. It’s called a bike lane for a reason, and this is hardly a bike.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 10:11am

• Celine

  I support this measure but would like the specify that these vehicles should not operate in bike lanes as they have motors and are significantly wider than bikes. This will cause safety issues for bikers.

  However, cargo bike delivery is a great idea to reduce trucks on our streets.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 10:15am

• David A Knowles

  It’s completely ridiculous to allow 4 foot wide 4 wheel vehicles in the bike lanes, especially ones doing deliveries and therefore need to stop frequently. These are by no reasonable definition “bicycles”. This will make bike lanes much less useful, usable and safe for all other users. A much better solution would be to reduce traffic speeds to 25mph across Manhattan so it is safe for e-vehicles like these to use the car lanes.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 10:19am

• Sandy

  Cargo bikes should use car lanes only and not bike lanes. Bike lanes are already difficult to navigate with speeding e-bikes. I have biked in bike lanes alongside Amazon and Fresh Direct cargo bikes, and having more and larger ones will be too hazardous for manual bikes. Cargo bikes should not park on sidewalks which will cause further sidewalk congestion. They should use street loading zones only.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 10:19am

• evan barden

  it seems like this is to allow package deliver vehicles to use the bike lanes, along with bikes, e-bikes, standing scooters, and other personal micromobility craft. the package delivery vehicles are much wider than any of the other allowable craft, which will clog bike lanes and further, will make frequent stops. those vehicles, when stopped, will occupy an entire one-way bike lane, forcing personal craft out into traffic.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 10:23am

• John Maier

  Thank you for taking cargo bikes into consideration to help green our streets and move cargo delivery into a human centered transportation mode. This is long overdue and much needed, not only do we need dedicated delivery locations at our curb space, we need dedicated cargo bike locations unfettered by large vans and USPS vehicles (USPS are some of the worst offenders on our streets these days in the delivery field, routinely blocking bike lanes, crosswalks, and double parking).

  The one major issue I, and many others, have with the proposed language is in Section 1–“A pedal-assist commercial bicycle shall not be more than seventy-eight (78) inches in height or more than one hundred twenty (120) inches in length, including any attached trailer.” This length limit would be a mistake that would eliminate one of the most active cargo bike delivery networks currently thriving in the city, the Whole Foods delivery network that uses trailers, that with their bikes, are longer in length than 10 feet. Please reconsider this language in consultation with those within the active industry in NYC to ensure that this successful work continues.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 10:28am

• John Akbari

  no electric-assist or electric-powered vehicles, only human-powered

  36in maximum width

  (5) [C] (iv) “loading and unloading property NOT TO EXCEED 20 (TWENTY) MINUTES AND NOT TO STOP WITHIN 10 (TEN) FEET OF ALL OTHER ADJACENT COMMERICAL BICYCLES.”

  (8) (i) ID label should be on front and rear of bicyle, in black on white background, with lettering no less than 2 inches tall

  Comment added September 11, 2023 10:29am

• Danny Behar

  I think this is a horrible idea. It makes bike lanes more dangerous and completely defeats the purpose of why they were created. The inclusion of these vehicles in the bike lane is a guarantee of more injuries and deaths.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 10:35am

• Shaurav Datta

  I am glad the Mayor’s Office, DOT, and the City Council are thinking about more sustainable and safer ways to have delivery companies serve New Yorkers. However, as a bicycle commuter, and in light of current infrastructure conditions I would oppose authorizing these up to 4-feet wide motorized vehicles to use existing bike lanes. That (4-feet) is the actual width of many bike lanes currently designed by DOT and a delivery vehicle stopped in a bike would force bicyclists to unsafely enter active traffic lanes to go around the obstruction and restrict the flow of travel. I have already had to encounter this on the two-way bike lane at Brooklyn Bridge, where cargo bikes with wide trailers can restrict the lane width available to bicyclists approaching from the opposite direction creating dangerous collision risk. Permitting the use of these motorized delivery vehicles in two-way and/or contraflow bike lanes given our current infrastructure is going to cause greater conflict among bike lane users. Our City is simply woefully behind on accommodating the demand for safe bike lanes, and adding new, higher-powered and extra-wide motorized vehicles to our current bike lanes is going to pose a safety hazard to all other users relying on conventional bicycles. This is a good idea to consider, but the City should please carefully consider the safety impact on conventional bicycle users in light of our currently inadequate bike lane infrastructure, and only then move forward on this rule-making. Thank you for your consideration.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 10:51am

• Michael Moote

  All for smaller delivery vehicles. But they should not be allowed to use the existing bike infrastructure. Which is already inadaque for safe cycling.

  Cyclists have a hard enough time as it is. People are dying.

  Bring protected lanes to McGuiness Blvd. 9th Ave Brooklyn. Everywhere. Look to European cities, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, berlin as examples. Widen sidewalks. Remove street parking.

  Ticket drivers and delivery vehicles who park in the lane. Stop ticketing casual cyclists for minor infractions. —- we need a bounty program for reporting cars similar to emissions.

  When new York invests more heavily in protected bike lanes everywhere we can talk again.

  All this said… smaller vehicles better than bigger vehicles.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 10:57am

• Rebecca Millsop

  As a cyclist I am already terrified by the delivery scooters in bike lanes. This will make cycling extremely unsafe. I am opposed to this measure and sincerely hope that NYC will prioritize the health and safety of the cycling population and come up with another solution for commercial deliveries.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 11:04am

• Sam Kronfeld

  Hello,

  My name is Sam Kronfeld. As a biking enthusiast in our wonderful city, I think having pedal-assisted commercial vehicles in the bike lanes is a giant step back in the cities attempts to be more bike-friendly. Already we bikers are still fighting for our small strip of bike lanes against pedestrians, unlawful parking of vehicles, and mopeds. To further damage all impede bikes from using their tiny share of the lanes is a failure to improve infrastructure of this city. Unless bike lanes are significantly widened to accommodate more bicycle usage, I see nothing but more pedestrian casualties occurring due to commercial oversight rather than structural benefits in the long term.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 11:04am

• Susan Lahn

  Vehicles do not belong on sidewalks, not even in the pedestrian super sidewalks on Ninth Avenue.

  Although fewer trucks is a great idea — the individual delivery trucks are VEHICLES!

  We should not allow companies in NYC to come up with solutions they think are better, but support their own problems — the use of cargo TRUCKS on any sidewalk is counter to the need to prioritize pedestrians.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 11:05am

• Jodi van Breda

  Sounds great as long as they use the regular auto lane. They will make the BIKE lanes unusable for the rest of us.

  As others have suggested, we need a dedicated lane for e-bikes and mopeds.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 11:11am

• Michael Binday

  For public safety, these larger and heavier bicycles should require a license and insurance. This is the only way they will follow the rules of the road such as traffic lights, etc. I like many New Yorkers face a daily threat of “bicycles” that are driven dangerous. Too fast, wrong direction, ignoring red lights and more. The decision on these bigger commercial bicycles is a rare opportunity to regulate safety and include a license that gives “teeth” to safety.

  Bicycle lanes: Concurrent with any approval must be a rule on whether these commercial vehicles use the car lanes or bicycle lanes. Noting their size they appear more appropriate for car lanes than bicycle lanes. Imagine a family of four with two young children in the bike lanes encountering this behemoth commercial vehicle. It is a worrisome situation.

  I welcome the environmental benefits. But only after safety is addressed.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 11:11am

• Mary

  Please do not allow these vehicles in bike lanes. Bike lanes are already made inaccessible all over the city by parked cars and riders of electric two wheeled vehicles that go the wrong way, take up the whole lane and don’t let anyone pass, and move at unsafe speeds. Allowing in commercial vehicles that will block the entire bike lane will force cyclists into car traffic, into parked cars, into curbs, into pedestrians. Pedestrians will also be made unsafe by these large vehicles creating blind spots.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 11:21am

• Rita Callahan

  As a frequent biker who depends on protected bike lanes, I am extremely concerned about the safety of biking if cargo bikes can use bike lanes. How can this possibly work? A bike cannot safely pass a cargo bike in a bike lane, so I imagine a lineup of cargo bikes followed by “regular” bikes and delivery bikes, all trying to move forward. Biking is already dangerous because of the speed and lack of communication by delivery bikes. At least delivery bikes can be seen. I can’t imagine how I could see around a cargo bike in order to move safely. Please come up with a different solution that meets important environmental needs and the needs of people who bike.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 11:22am

• Anurag Papolu

  As a regular bike user in New York, and supporter of clean technologies, I do not support this proposed rule in its current state. Bike lanes, sidewalks and pedestrian spaces around the city need to be widened, protected and expanded, and car lanes reduced to create space first, before these electric delivery vehicles are allowed to use bike lanes. Otherwise, cyclists will be forced to move into traffic increasing the risk to their lives. The electric delivery vehicles can stop in an existing car lane as a temporary solution before car lanes are reduced and bike lanes/pedestrian space is expanded

  In the city of Amsterdam, where bike and pedestrian infrastructure is is harmoniously integrated into the street while car traffic, pollution and noise is greatly reduced, deliveries are still made by regular sized delivery vehicles which don’t use bike lanes. Instead the overall reduction in car traffic allows delivery vehicles to be parked in the driving lane without causing inconvenience to any other road users.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 11:45am

• Robyn Schmidt

  Commercial cargo bikes should not be allowed to operate in bike lanes as they will create additional congestion and impede the flow of cyclist traffic.
  NYC bike lanes are already treated as double parking lanes for deliveries by many vendors and this will only increase that problem, forcing more cyclists into traffic lanes.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 12:15pm

• Yuxiao Lei

  I fully agree that the use of pedal-assist cargo bikes is a much safer and more environmentally conscious option than delivery trucks. I am in support of this shift and hope to see less delivery trucks clogging up our streets and contributing to air pollution. However, I am concerned with the use of such bikes in bike lanes, which are already overburdened with bikes, e-bikes, scooters, and other micro-mobility vehicles, some of which do not comply with local laws. Add in the fact that these cargo bikes will need to stop along their delivery route to make said deliveries, I can see there being many issues if they are allowed in shared bike lanes. In addition, the size of such cargo bikes may pose an additional congestion challenge. I encourage lawmakers to explore further options including designated parking areas & lanes for cargo bikes.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 12:15pm

• Jonathan meter

  This will likely create traffic in bike lanes and make the city even less safe for bikers. Keep commercial vehicles in the street. This is a terrible idea.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 12:37pm

• Charles Stewart III

  I strongly support this proposal, although I would like to see continued support for longer e-bike trailers. trailers are an easy way to increase the capacity of e-bikes

  Comment added September 11, 2023 12:41pm

• Douglas Kean

  This was my comment – feel free to re use/re purpose —

  I do not support this rule as it allows small commercial electric trucks into bicycle lanes. Calling these “bicycles“ is quite a stretch. It is a four wheeled vehicle powered by an electric motor. The inclusion of pedals on these vehicles is simply a gimmick to allow mini electric trucks access to bicycle lanes and avoid vehicle registration costs and tickets. I am not against the operation of these vehicles in New York City, but it will be unsafe for real bicycle traffic in dedicated bicycle lanes. One safety advantage of bicycles is they are lightweight an offer a lot visibility and situational awareness for the rider. Four wheeled cargo carrying vehicles that are 48 inches wide will block the bike lane and block the operators view of what’s going on around them and block other bicycle traffics view as well. Furthermore, the weight of these vehicles will far exceed the weight of a normal bicycle and rider and contribute to more damaging collisions. NYCDOT should only allow these vehicles if they are required to operate in the motor vehicle lane, or are given their own dedicated space (because as described, they are a electric motor powered vehicle). This would allow parcel carrying companies to continue to move forward on their green initiatives, and will still afford traffic reduction because the width of the vehicles is much less than current parcel carrying gas operated vehicles which are frequently double parked. Thank you

  Comment added September 11, 2023 12:47pm

• Cory Clifton

  I support pedal assist commercial cargo bicycles, but the proposed dimensions in this rule are not safe. 4-wheeled vehicles that are 48 inches wide are too large for the bike lanes in New York City. I already transport my children on a cargo bike, and the vehicles proposed in this rule would dwarf existing bikes, including mine. Replacing large trucks with smaller cargo bikes should absolutely be prioritized by the city, but stretching the definition of “bike” is not beneficial.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 1:14pm

• Everett

  No vehicle should be permitted in the bike lane that cannot be circumnavigated by bike in the likely event of speed mismatch, it breaking down, or illegally standing in the bike lane. Additionally commercial usage of the bike lane must be accompanied by increased police enforcement and higher fines for commercial vehicles as a blocked bike lane endangers lives.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 1:19pm

• Cherie Winkler

  I am 100% against allowing ANY bicycle on a sidewalk, much less a pedal-assisted commercial bike. Right now I see these in the bike lanes, which is where they belong. If they need to deliver goods, they can park in the street like any other commercial vehicle and use a hand-cart to bring goods to the door. That is the way it works now, and it works fine. We have a huge issue at present with bicycles on the sidewalk. Let’s focus on allowing pedestrians to use the one place they are supposed to be safe. And let’s make positions like Transportation Commissioner elected so nonsense like this stops in its tracks.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 1:33pm

• James Lee

  This will cause incredible amounts of traffic in bike lanes, but would work if there is an easy way to integrate the same app as idling vehicle reporting. The bounty rewards system, already proposed in the system for other infractions near schools, would almost entirely solve the MTA budget crisis.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 1:45pm

• Katherine Forst

  I do not support this rule as it allows small commercial electric trucks into bicycle lanes. Calling these “bicycles“ is quite a stretch. It is a four wheeled vehicle powered by an electric motor. The inclusion of pedals on these vehicles is simply a gimmick to allow mini electric trucks access to bicycle lanes and avoid vehicle registration costs and tickets. I am not against the operation of these vehicles in New York City, but it will be unsafe for real bicycle traffic in dedicated bicycle lanes. One safety advantage of bicycles is they are lightweight an offer a lot visibility and situational awareness for the rider. Four wheeled cargo carrying vehicles that are 48 inches wide will block the bike lane and block the operators view of what’s going on around them and block other bicycle traffics view as well. Furthermore, the weight of these vehicles will far exceed the weight of a normal bicycle and rider and contribute to more damaging collisions. NYCDOT should only allow these vehicles if they are required to operate in the motor vehicle lane (because as described, they are a electric motor powered vehicle). This would allow parcel carrying companies to continue to move forward on their green initiatives, and will still afford traffic reduction because the width of the vehicles is much less than current parcel carrying gas operated vehicles which are frequently double parked.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 1:57pm

• Jacqueline Gikow

  This is a terrible idea. It will cause a dangerous obstacle in the bike lane that will force cyclists into traffic on busy streets.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 2:01pm

• Ronan Murphy

  I do not support this rule as it allows small commercial electric trucks into bicycle lanes. Calling these “bicycles“ is quite a stretch. It is a four wheeled vehicle powered by an electric motor. The inclusion of pedals on these vehicles is simply a gimmick to allow mini electric trucks access to bicycle lanes and avoid vehicle registration costs and tickets. I am not against the operation of these vehicles in New York City, but it will be unsafe for real bicycle traffic in dedicated bicycle lanes. One safety advantage of bicycles is they are lightweight an offer a lot visibility and situational awareness for the rider. Four wheeled cargo carrying vehicles that are 48 inches wide will block the bike lane and block the operators view of what’s going on around them and block other bicycle traffics view as well. Furthermore, the weight of these vehicles will far exceed the weight of a normal bicycle and rider and contribute to more damaging collisions. NYCDOT should only allow these vehicles if they are required to operate in the motor vehicle lane (because as described, they are a electric motor powered vehicle). This would allow parcel carrying companies to continue to move forward on their green initiatives, and will still afford traffic reduction because the width of the vehicles is much less than current parcel carrying gas operated vehicles which are frequently double parked.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 2:05pm

• Keith Fuchslocher

  I do not support this rule as it allows small commercial electric trucks into bicycle lanes. Calling these “bicycles“ is quite a stretch. It is a four wheeled vehicle powered by an electric motor. The inclusion of pedals on these vehicles is simply a gimmick to allow mini electric trucks access to bicycle lanes and avoid vehicle registration costs and tickets. I am not against the operation of these vehicles in New York City, but it will be unsafe for real bicycle traffic in dedicated bicycle lanes. One safety advantage of bicycles is they are lightweight an offer a lot visibility and situational awareness for the rider. Four wheeled cargo carrying vehicles that are 48 inches wide will block the bike lane and block the operators view of what’s going on around them and block other bicycle traffics view as well. Furthermore, the weight of these vehicles will far exceed the weight of a normal bicycle and rider and contribute to more damaging collisions. NYCDOT should only allow these vehicles if they are required to operate in the motor vehicle lane (because as described, they are a electric motor powered vehicle). This would allow parcel carrying companies to continue to move forward on their green initiatives, and will still afford traffic reduction because the width of the vehicles is much less than current parcel carrying gas operated vehicles which are frequently double parked.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 2:07pm

• Gregg Kapuscinski

  I oppose adding these commercial vehicles to the bike lanes. I have lived in Hell’s Kitchen for 30 years and have used a Brompton bicycle in the neighborhood since 2005. But I have avoided riding my bicycle in the city for more than a year because the bike lanes have become increasingly dangerous with speeding electric bikes and precarious bike lanes which are often obstructed. My husband was riding his bike in the Central Park bike lane on March 17, 2023 and was cut off by a speeding electric bike delivery vehicle. He was thrown to the ground cracking a rib and injuring his hand (he is a pianist), all while the offending cyclist disappeared. Of course there was no license plate nor way to track down the cyclist, and my husband has had to endure the pain and cost of months of recovery which is still not complete.

  Adding larger, speeding, commercial vehicles to the bike lanes will further reduce quality of life for residents. We need protection from the vehicles already using the bike lanes through actual enforcement of rules, not additional vehicles adding to the physical threat. I am against adding these vehicles to the bike lanes.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 2:14pm

• dan friedman

  Motorized cargo bikes should not be more than 3′ wide.
  They should not be able to park on the sidewalk — there should be loading bays.
  There should be tickets for all e-bikes, e-scooters and motorbikes on the greenways.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 2:28pm

• Aubrey Nolan

  I do NOT support these vehicles being designated and bikes and therefore allowed in bike lanes.

  I don’t think that most of people commenting here, unfortunately, understand that this distinction will negatively affect cyclists using bicycle lanes. I support these vehicles being used instead of trucks, absolutely. More trucks off the road is always a positive thing. But these new vehicles should ride in traffic, with other large vehicles, rather than clogging bicycle lanes. I also anticipate that these vehicles will park in the bicycle lanes while they are unloaded, which will force cyclists to ride around them and create additional danger.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 2:31pm

• Joshua Cork

  I’m an avid cyclist in the city, and I’m excited about the potential that these new, more environmentally-friendly delivery methods bring to our great city. That being said, these vehicles have absolutely no place in the existing bike infrastructure we have. If usage of these new pedal-assist vehicles is planned to increase, our bike lanes need to widen to accommodate them alongside existing cyclists of all skill levels and speeds.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 2:42pm

• Amanda

  This will make normal bikes even more difficult to ride and unsafe for the average person. You’re essentially telling the people of New York that businesses are more important than the safety of bikers. What a shame.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 2:42pm

• Ben

  This seems like a poorly thought out plan to me. We already have a huge problem with mopeds and other illegal motorized bicycle constantly and recklessly driving in the bike lane. This will just add fuel to the fire and make it more dangerous for cyclists and pedestrians alike.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 2:46pm

• Nina Godlewski

  No. Just no. The bike lanes in this city barely serve bikers. Leave them be. This is such a monumentally horrible idea and it’s dangerous in so many terrible ways.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 2:47pm

• Katarina Demos

  As a commuting cyclist and user of bike lanes, I staunchly oppose this amendment. The logic that this mandate will somehow “make deliveries safer” comes at the cost of cyclist safety. In a city with one of the largest cycling populations, this is a ridiculous amendment that puts the city’s population at risk. Beyond endangering the general population of bike commuters and delivery bikers, this amendment endangers the rising number of people who use citibikes. Citibikers are generally not as proficient as the normal cyclist in defensive cycling, so expecting them to safely adapt to the introduction of commercial vehicles is ignorant and disinterested in their wellbeing. This amendment could have literal grave consequences for biker safety all at in the name of expanding corporate interest. To pass it would be to endorse a prioritization of money over lives.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 2:47pm

• Benjamin Laufer

  I do not support this rule as it allows small commercial electric trucks into bicycle lanes. Calling these “bicycles“ is quite a stretch. It is a four wheeled vehicle powered by an electric motor. The inclusion of pedals on these vehicles is simply a gimmick to allow mini electric trucks access to bicycle lanes and avoid vehicle registration costs and tickets. I am not against the operation of these vehicles in New York City, but it will be unsafe for real bicycle traffic in dedicated bicycle lanes. One safety advantage of bicycles is they are lightweight an offer a lot visibility and situational awareness for the rider. Four wheeled cargo carrying vehicles that are 48 inches wide will block the bike lane and block the operators view of what’s going on around them and block other bicycle traffics view as well. Furthermore, the weight of these vehicles will far exceed the weight of a normal bicycle and rider and contribute to more damaging collisions. NYCDOT should only allow these vehicles if they are required to operate in the motor vehicle lane (because as described, they are a electric motor powered vehicle). This would allow parcel carrying companies to continue to move forward on their green initiatives, and will still afford traffic reduction because the width of the vehicles is much less than current parcel carrying gas operated vehicles which are frequently double parked.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 2:55pm

• Alexander Hopkins

  As an NYC cyclist I am vehemently against having commercial “bicycles” essentially parked in the bike lane blocking all cycling traffic. This will force cyclists into vehicle traffic or pedestrian areas which is unbelievably dangerous and unnecessary.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 3:23pm

• Noah Kelley

  I oppose pedal-assist commercial bicycles in NYC bike lanes due to the safety risks introduced to already highly-congested thoroughfares: cargo bikes are likely to park in the lanes and make it difficult to pass, each of which forces normal cyclists to weave in and out of traffic, thus negating the principle benefit of bike lanes.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 3:24pm

• Rubin

  I am strongly against the proposal.
  These are not bicycles, these are cars: Amazon delivery cars. They are as large as cars, and they will stop there the whole time and block the actual bikers. It will force bikers to go the road, and make the road messy and dangerous.
  The bike lanes are already full of parked cars, driving cars. There is no space for any fake bikes.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 4:31pm

• Hillary Getty

  This proposal effectively renders bike lanes unusable by actual bicycles. There is already so much danger to cyclists biking in bike lanes that to clog them up with these vehicles would force cyclists into traffic. I oppose this proposal and believe it will result in an uptick in injury and death.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 4:31pm

• Belinda Mims

  This will make riding a commuter bicycle dangerous. It is obvious that this will clog bike lanes pushing riders out of dedicated bike lanes into traffic causing a dangerous situation for riders.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 4:45pm

• Frank

  I am strongly against this proposed rule as it allows for what are in reality small trucks in bicycle lanes. A four-wheeled vehicle which is 4 feet wide, 6.5 feet tall, and 10 feet long is absolutely not a bicycle, nor are they safe for mixed-traffic with people on bicycles. The inclusion of pedals on these vehicles is simply a gimmick to allow mini electric trucks access to bicycle lanes and avoid vehicle registration costs and tickets. I am not against the operation of these vehicles in New York City, but it will be unsafe for real bicycle traffic in dedicated bicycle lanes. It is also likely unsafe for drivers of these-mini trucks to be in mixed traffic with large automobiles, semi-trucks, and buses; however these safety issues can be solved by limiting the size and weight of automobiles à la the proposed limits to “pedal-assist commercial bicycles” in this proposed rule. Furthermore, instead mandating speed governors on “pedal-assist commercial bicycles”, they should be mandated on all automobiles in the city, as these large, heavy vehicles are responsible for the vast majority of pedestrian injuries and fatalities. Speed reduction is proven to reduce the risk of both of these. NYCDOT should only allow these vehicles if they are required to operate in the motor vehicle lane (because as described, they are a electric motor powered vehicle). This would allow parcel carrying companies to continue to move forward on their green initiatives, and will still afford traffic reduction because the width of the vehicles is much less than current parcel carrying gas operated vehicles which are frequently double parked.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 4:58pm

• Eric Olson

  This is a huge mistake.

  Bike lanes should be used by traditional bikes and e-bikes only. They are often narrow and use of commercial cargo bikes will clog them up and make them basically unusable for their original purpose….bikes.

  Commercial cargo bikes, delivery mopeds, etc. either belong in their own dedicated lane or with car traffic.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 5:01pm

• Josh

  I am against this. There is already limited space in the streets for bikers. Allowing this would completely disrupt already weak bike infrastructure in this city. Alternatively, take away some road space from cars or double the size of the bike lanes.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 5:06pm

• Jacob Williams

  Yeah, I am not into this. The cycling lane is a safe space to keep cyclists moving fluidly in a safe manner which does not include “stops” Introducing these vehicles will cause major disruptions and in turn major safety concerns for cyclists using the lane.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 5:19pm

• Michaela Rogers

  Worst idea ever. What is the DOT thinking and who is making money off our tax dollars paying which will pay $20,000 for each un-green cargo bike with no licensing? Are you all idiots? You cannot de-classify an ebike to a regular bike for CORRUPT purposr, any putpode, so that there will not be laws regulating the drivers and apps of these vehicles. Corruption. People will be injured on sidewalks and in bike lanes. Senator Krueger is objecting, and she has more smarts, status and knowledge than His Holy Ydanis Rodriguez. Nobody really needs or wants to pay
  $9 for a gallon of milk because someone’s pocket is being lined with A CONTRACT to do business in a hazardous manner. Absolutely 💯 undemocratic push of a new DOT policy and it’s disgusting.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 5:23pm

• sam

  Bikes lanes are currently at capacity. There is a rampant issue already with illegal e-bikes, motorcycles, scooters, etc using the space. Combined with a four wheel vehicle, you will see an uptick in dangerous and possibly deadly behavior.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 5:33pm

• SM

  These are not bicycles – they are vehicles with a motor vehicle. These are nearly the same dimensions as a golf cart which are not allowed in bike lanes in NYS. Allowing these in bike lanes will put cyclists in danger. They will stop the natural flow of bike traffic during peak commuting hours, have frequent stops, unload in the lane, and push actual bicycles into the street where cars will hit them. We are already fighting for space with unregulated motorcycles and e-bikes zooming through this lane (and causing preventable accidents) – this will be another deadly accident waiting to happen.

  Currently, we see our city and public spaces disrespected by commercial vehicles. Trucks double parking, parking in bike lanes, blocking sidewalks or fire hydrants. If this is passed it will become another space that citizens will be pushed out of so corporations can continue to line their pockets and take advantage of the community.

  These vehicles should be operating in the road – not bike lane

  Comment added September 11, 2023 5:42pm

• Ellen

  These electric bikes and anything with a motor on it should have a license plate, insurance and a license like any other motor vehicle. These electric bikes and gas powered bikes should never ever be on a sidewalk. Street only following all rules of the road just as a car/truck does. They can kill people, cause accidents, and must be held responsible.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 5:59pm

• Caroline Marceano

  These commercial assisted bikes have no place in our bike lanes. They are for pedestrian use, and these bikes have a significant mass and area to them which will make biking much more inconvenient and dangerous for our riders.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 6:09pm

• Matthew

  Bike lanes are congested and dangerous already with mopeds, e-bikes, bicycles, pedestrians, and cars. There is not enough space to go around as it currently stands, and we need to do better policing of what is the in the lane in the first place. Until bike lanes are significantly widened (remove a car lane or parking), we cannot have what is effectively a truck added to the bike lane. This will only complicate matters and make the lanes more dangerous and congested, especially when they start parking.

  If and when bike lanes are doubled, I think this rule can be reevaluated.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 6:19pm

• LG

  What’s in a name? Doesn’t the T in DOT stand for Transportation? When did transportation include using our sidewalks? Even ambulances don’t ride of the sidewalk to pick up disabled people.
  The bike lanes are simply to narrow to accommodate the wagons – i.e., the commercial delivery ‘bikes.’ It is not possible to rebuild the city’s infrastructure to accommodate all the new kinds of “transportation,” whether recreational scooters and skateboards or large wagons pulled by batteries rather than pedals. While we all would like to reduce GHG, requiring all commercial delivery trucks to be electric vehicles (pick a realistic date for implementation). That would be a much larger reduction and wouldn’t put people at risk in the process.
  The DOT seems to have lost its bearings. If public safety is the priority, how in the world can you reconcile that with allowing motorized scooters and bikes on PEDESTRIAN walkways and in the parks? The streets in the parks (Central Park, Prospect Park) have been closed to vehicular traffic for years, making the parks quieter and safer for everyone. Who is pushing the DOT for changing that?
  These decisions, made without significant public input, are putting people’s lives at risk. Who wants these changes? Of course, the people who own the delivery companies who can provide literal door-to-door service for their goods at lower cost, yet at greater personal risk to both their drivers and the public at-large.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 7:37pm

• Donovan Whitter

  This is incredibly dumb and only serves to make the already inadequate bike infrastructure in NYC even more over run and abused by personal and commercial vehicles.

  These things will do nothing to increase safety for cyclist and only serve as a further encroachment on the bike line that borders on making it another car lane.

  How will anyone pass one of these with a hardened barrier? – or is the point that once you pass this you’ll say you will no longer harden barriers…I wonder.

  Until you’ve removed far more car lanes than you have now (not even close to the 100 miles of bike lanes per year for the past 2 years under ADAMS) this is nothing but a downgrade for all cyclist in this city.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 7:41pm

• Humzah Choudry

  This should not be allowed. Commercial vehicles should not be blocking pedestrian lanes especially considering how much room they’ll take up and that they’ll be stopping regularly

  Comment added September 11, 2023 8:01pm

• Biker

  These aren’t cargo bikes. They are mini delivery trucks. Do not allow them in the bike lane. This will only make it harder to encourage people who don’t bike to bike in the city.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 8:09pm

• Kyle

  Adding more hazards to pedestrian traffic areas, wide-impassable objects that impede traffic is counter to what the space should be used for. Bike traffic. It’s not as if the bike lanes are already underutilized. Trying to get to work in the morning with these waste of spaces would do nothing but cause injury. The only thing this bill will do is turn all of the bike lanes into unloading zones.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 8:19pm

• Melissa

  1. Completely unacceptable that NYC is working to benefit CORPORATE Amazon and other E-Commerce.!
  In the meantime the City is hurting small stores which suffer from high rent, competition from e-commerce and from crime.

  2. The City should add a tax to E-Commerce deliveries – the City should discourage E-Commerce deliveries which create waste, litter and which are bad for the environment.

  3. No Cargo Bikes on sidewalks – Cargo Bikes can go in the bike lane

  Comment added September 11, 2023 8:49pm

• Kevin Smith

  I would like to encourage this body to resist the implementation of new rules that would allow for larger pedal and/or electric delivery bikes on New York Streets.

  In fact, I would like to encourage this body to look at all the ways that delivery companies (UPS, Fresh Direct, Amazon) and all of their sub-contractors are using public streets, parking spaces and sidewalks as open air distribution centers. Enough is enough…. deliveries can be sorted and sent out from central warehouses in a way that is efficient, green and doesn’t cause congestion or bog up sidewalks.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 9:09pm

• Benjamin Beverly

  I strongly encourage allowing more cargo e-bikes for deliveries in NYC for the sake of the environment and pedestrian safety.

  Given their size, I suggest allowing these e-bikes to use the road (to prevent accidents when ordinary commuter bikes pass them) and limiting street sidewalk parking to midday and late evening hours (avenues can accomodate them at any hour).

  Comment added September 11, 2023 9:18pm

• Holly Mendenhall

  These are pedal assist bicycles in name only. There is precious little infrastructure devoted to NYers who use microbmobility vehicles.

  This will block site lines, further endangering already vulnerable cyclists. These vehicles can use traffic lanes with cars.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 9:28pm

• Sean Rowden

  Terrible idea. Very suspicious that this rule consistently describes these new mini cargo truck vehicles as “bicycles,” but they aren’t in any meaningful way– Critically they are NOT compatible with the pace of bicycle traffic that protected lanes are designed to accommodate and promote, and should NOT be allowed in bicycle lanes. They would, I believe, be very well suited to the main travel lanes of our our surface streets, but then the text of the rule constricts them to be underpowered for this purpose. Just awful all around

  Comment added September 11, 2023 10:01pm

• Celia Lustgarten

  As a older New Yorker trying to get across streets while bicycles,
  E-bikes, cargo E-bikes, motorcycles let alone cars, taxis and buses make it a horrendous crossing. Now you are proposing making E-bikes and cargo E-bikes to be listed as bicycles. And allowing them on sidewalks! I am truly amazed at your inability to see how dangerous these pedal-assist commercial bicycles are to the average New Yorker let alone to Senior Citizens who cannot “jump” out of the way as these “bicycles” ignore stop signs or people crossing the street or navigating walking a sidewalk. How many people need to be injured or killed before common sense prevails?

  Comment added September 11, 2023 10:29pm

• Saniya A

  Not at all! Please leave bike lanes for BIKES. The city is already crowded and unsafe for bikers, and has a huge culture of favoring cars. There aren’t enough bike lanes and it is dangerous enough as is with restaurants encroaching on bike lanes, cop cars being parked, and bike lanes being dangerously close to buses and traffic. With commercial cargo vehicles, you may as well be eliminating bike lanes. Hard no on this!!!!

  Comment added September 11, 2023 10:42pm

• Christopher DeMartin

  Great idea with the caveat that we need greatly expanded cycling infrastructure. We shouldn’t see so many cars in a modern city.

  Comment added September 11, 2023 11:49pm

• The Hub Bicycles

  The Hub Bicycles is a NYC based e-bike startup that provides two and three wheeled cargo e-bikes to the last mile delivery industry. Our public comments about the proposed regulations are attached.

  Comment attachment
  Hub-Bicycles-NYC-DOT-Public-Hearing-Comments-9_13_23.pdf

  Comment added September 12, 2023 12:11am

• NERISSA COAN

  Commercial entities such as Seamless, Door Dash, Uber Eats, Getir, Gopuff, etc should be paying for their own bike lanes and ribbon bridges so that ordinary NYC cyclists on 20-25lb bicycles don’t have to constantly be in harms way sharing the “bicycle” lanes with all of these electric and motorized and gas powered motor vehicles. Regardless of their commercial designation, the bicycle lanes should be for BICYCLES not for massive stacks of Rubbermaid tubs being towed by cargo bikes or silver citibikes whizzing by or one wheels operated by people in full motorcycle gear flying uphill over the bridges at 30mph or motorbikes or e scooters or mopeds or “pedal assist” motor vehicles. They should be for BICYCLES, you remember those old-fashioned things that are powered by your legs? The bike lanes are already blocked by police vehicles, parked cars, joggers, motorized “bikes”, please do not add more life threatening hazards to our cycling experience/commute.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 1:22am

• Jerome Ko

  Allowing these commercial vehicles in bike lanes would put cyclists lives at risk by forcing them into car traffic lanes when stopped for deliveries. I am 100% against this proposed change!

  Comment added September 12, 2023 2:27am

• Jonya Tan

  I believe that it is ridiculous to allow motorised vehicles in bike lanes and would pose a danger to existing people. In fact, they should go on existing roads just like motorcycles do rather than hinder or crash a slow person in a bike lane. Otherwise >2m bike lanes mean that you might as well create another lane.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 2:27am

• Jason Sickle

  Full support

  Comment added September 12, 2023 7:49am

• Stuart Hyden

  I am appreciative of the NYCDOT actions around and the recognition of the positive impact UL rated e-cargo bikes can have on our community and environment. While I am in full support of increasing the width of e-cargo bikes and other e-bike configurations to a 48-inch width, limiting the length of a bike and trailer to 10 ft defeats the purpose of expanding capacity. By implementing a 10’ regulation would push freight to trucks/vans to gain the much-needed capacity, even when factoring in congestion pricing.

  The solutions would be to add more e-cargo bikes to meet the same current capacity which does not does not solve the problem but creates one. In fact, this would drive up shipping cost through the added cost of equipment just to meet the same capacity. This would also impact bikers’ income by creating more part-time jobs thus reducing full-time jobs and impacting tips. All these factors increase package delivery costs to the consumer, which in turn force shippers back to carbon-based delivery methods to gain capacity at less of a cost.

  I urge the NYCDOT to enact the 48’ inch width for e-cargo bike operations while not reducing the current e-bike & trailer configuration to 10’.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 8:56am

• jessica carballal

  NO! E-bikes are a very real danger to the walking citizens of the city. At the very least they should be registered in the owners name so that any moving traffic violations (of which there are many) can be tracked and fined by the city. These e-bikes are electric vehicles and should be classified as such, requiring a license and insurance to own and operate.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 9:00am

• Michael

  I think the idea of using these vehicles instead of the standard box truck is good, however they should not be in the bike lanes. The bike lanes are already over crowded as it is and the city has done nothing to police the use of illegal mopeds in the bike lanes i.e. delivery drivers. Adding larger and more dangerous vehicles to the bike lanes will put cyclists more at risk just to appease cars. These trucks will be blocking the entire bike lane when stopped forcing bikes into the car travel lane resulting in likely more incidents. I would support this measure if they took away a lane from car travel for the delivery vehicles.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 9:06am

• Michael Trillo

  What an absolutely terrible idea. Bike lanes are crowded and dangerous enough as it is without having large, clunky, and slow delivery vehicles that will block visibility and block the lanes entirely, inevitably forcing bikers into lanes of car traffic.

  If something like this is to be implemented, there needs to be passing lanes, turning lanes, and pull-over lanes, as well. This clearly has not been thought through.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 9:26am

• Gary Richardson

  This is one of those well-meaning changes that would have disastrous effects. Having a four-foot wide four-wheel vehicle in the bike lane making frequent stops and extended times parked/idle is going to make cycling in the city even less safe than it already is. It will force cyclists to make dangerous maneuvers into traffic to avoid these vehicles. It will de-incentivize New Yorkers from cycling. This reeks of UPS seeing bike lanes as a free fast lane for them to exploit, cyclist safety be damned. I support cargo transitioning to greener vehicles like this but they should absolutely 100% be forbidden in the bike lane. Cyclists already deal with so many vehicles illegally driving and parking in the bike lanes, this would make the problem 100 times worse.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 9:44am

• Patricia Stareck

  WHAT ARE YOU DOING? It isn’t bad enough for pedestrians already?

  DO NOT PERMIT ANY MORE INFRINGEMENT ON PEDESTRIANS’ ABILITY TO WALK DOWN THE SIDWALK. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.

  Are you trying to force the already cyclist-bullied pedestrians to stay home and require all their living supplies to be delivered by these e-bikers?

  Do NOT let e-bikes come onto the sidewalks. The bike and e-bike situation is out of control!

  It is already an incredible challenge for pedestrians — especially the disabled, elderly and those with little kids and dogs — negotiating their way down the the sidewalks and streets of New York, having to avoid all manner of cyclists.

  Allowing electric vehicles on the sidewalk is sheer recklessness.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 9:45am

• Andrew Harrington

  Hello – I am a longtime New York City resident, voter, cyclist, and avid supporter of alternate transportation.

  I applaud the use of more cargo deliveries as an alternate to the heavy and dangerous trucks that currently clog our roads and have little to no regards for the pedestrians. However, and I can’t emphasize this strongly enough, these new cargo bikes need to be in addition to widen bike lanes and designated slots of the roads. They DO NOT belong in bike lanes in their current state.

  If these are allowed in the bike lanes, they will essentially end their usefulness for their main intended users: CYCLISTS! There will be no way to get around them, they will block the entirety of bike lanes, and massively increase the risk of crashes. Between the ebike delivery drivers, we are already running thin in terms of bike lane space. This will only make it worse.

  Allow these mini cargo trucks (because they are NOT bikes) in the roads, do not allow them to operate in our bike lanes or on our sidewalks. They are a great alternate to the large box trucks but I beg you to not rush this and simply allow them to operate in our already stretched thin bikes lanes. This is be very dangerous for cyclists and pedestrians.

  Stop putting fedex and UPS lobbyist money over the civilians who live and pay taxes. All we want are safe streets, and this will hurt the cyclists.

  Thank you.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 10:17am

• Skyler

  I love the concept of getting cars off the road in favor of other modes of transit. However I really don’t expect that NYC biking infrastructure is ready for something like this yet. Commercial vehicles are going to completely take over the biking lanes discouraging normal bike use. Good idea but NYC isn’t ready for it yet

  Comment added September 12, 2023 10:17am

• Jacob Cañas

  These vehicles do not belong on any biking infrastructure. They’re too large and will create a hazard

  Comment added September 12, 2023 10:44am

• Maria

  The rule must make sure that if these vehicles are allowed on city streets, they should absolutely not use the bike lanes. The bike lanes are already too narrow, congested, and dangerous. A 4-ft wide vehicle that is fully enclosed should not be allowed anywhere in the bike lane. DOT’s own bike lane regulations require the lanes to be 4 ft wide. How is a 4-ft wide vehicle going to fit into a 4-ft wide bike lane, especially if it is fully enclosed and completely blocks the view? Where is it going to park to drop off packages? Are we getting new lanes designed specifically for these little box trucks, with commercial parking for them on every block – because I am all for that. But please don’t add yet another type of vehicle to the bike lanes you refuse to design and protect well. It should be a requirement for anyone working for DOT to use the infrastructure they designed. Please imagine your kid riding a bicycle in the bike lane along with these new box trucks!

  Comment added September 12, 2023 11:08am

• Alex Vernor

  Usually I am all for increasing the number of pedal assisted vehicle on the streets of New York as they are great alternatives to the traditional larger, more dangerous, engine powered ones. However, allowing a vehicle such as this one, which would be expected to take multiple stops, thus interrupting the flow of traffic in bike lanes, represents a risk for other bike lane users as it will push them out into car traffic. This would disincentivize other users from using bike lanes, pushing them back into ubers, cabs, and other cars. The current bike infrastructure does not permit for a pedal assist vehicle this large to use alternative transportation lanes without creating danger for other users.

  I would shelf this idea for the future, when the City’s bike infrastructure has caught up to support pedal assist vehicles this large at a high usage scale. There are not enough wider bike lanes for this size of vehicle, but in the future I trust there will be.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 11:15am

• David Laurence

  Great Idea, However, all pedal Assist E Cargo bikes should have a license. They should not be in the bike lanes but be on the road with cars. Too many times they go on a bike lane in the wrong direction, through traffic lights, or down a one-way street in the wrong direction. Or at times on a pedestrian sidewalk. I am all for E-Bikes however, the DOT needs a way to control and enforce traffic laws. Posting signs that say no E-vehicles is not working on greenways as is done along the Hudson River.
  I am seeing large mopeds and motorcycles use bicycle lanes traveling at high speeds. With opportunity comes common sense and responsibility and NYC can remain bike-friendly while enforcing rules to maintain a livable NYC. It comes down to a quality of life issue and also a safety issue in NYC.
  Having a license will encourage the responsibility of the owner of the vehicle. The City can charge a fee for the license to recoup the expense + pay for the manpower to have it done. The license and vehicle can be taken away if rules keep being broken or fines can be charged for traffic offenses.

  Every member of the DOT committee should hop on a standard pedal bike and due some personal evaluation.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 11:30am

• W H

  While increasing cargo bikes for delivery is a commonsense solution to severe problem that has exploded with the rise of delivery culture, allowing these in bike lanes is down-right dangerous. Let me be clear, large delivery trucks need to go. They are dangerous and are always driven recklessly, have poor visibility, increase noise pollution, clog our streets, and poison our air. Getting them off the street will lead to much more enjoyable city and save lives. HOWEVER, allowing these in the bike lanes is downright laughable, insulting, and dangerous. Bike lanes are for cyclists, not for deliveries vehicles. Nobody in their right mind would consider these the same vehicle. Bike lanes are already crowded with delivery drivers on scooters and e-bikes FLYING through them. “Pedal-assist” cargo bikes are not standard pedal bikes, they are mini trucks. This is such a short-sighted solution that I’m sure the delivery-apps love. We cannot allow these mini trucks to impede on our already minimal bike lanes. If you want to solve congestion, get rid of the vast number of personal and ride-share cars on the road. Increase sidewalk space, widen bike lanes, and add more bus lanes. Mini delivery trucks are a small piece of the puzzle and let’s make sure we are using common sense regulations regarding them. The mayhem on our streets must end.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 11:40am

• Josafat Concepcion

  While the environmental and safety benefits could be exciting, four feet wide with four wheels is a small truck not a cargo bike and will not fit most already narrow bike lanes.
  We need a different lane for this type of vehicles in the city. Stop the insane car and truck use of our common space and bring more and clean public transportation option and limit the cargo to clean vehicles like this to the freed lanes.
  SAY NO to 4 wheeled UPS and FedEx delivery vehicles in our already bike lanes

  Comment added September 12, 2023 12:53pm

• Justin D'avignon Ford

  This law would not diminish the amount of delivery trucks on the road. It would just add more congestion to a public resource that is used by many for leisure, exercise and commuting. If NYC really wanted to reduce the emissions of delivery vehicles you would use part of the road to create commercial bike paths explicitly for delivery bikes/vehicles and not put additional congestion into bike paths.
  Doing that and making it against the law, and enforcing, to have carbon emitting vehicles used for deliveries.

  Please do not ruin the bike paths, that are essential for the transportation of NYC citizens just so delivery companies can save money.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 1:00pm

• Rick Singh

  These commercial pedal assist bikes should not be allowed on the bike paths. The effort to make the city greener is commendable, but not at the safety of bike riders. Bike lanes are already dangerous with e-bikes, mopeds and electric scooters which the city does little to enforce. Traveling on my regular bike over, with e-bikes, scooters and mopeds zooming past me or towards me, always makes my bike ride dangerous

  Comment added September 12, 2023 1:41pm

• Bob Sandla

  Allowing these large vehicles on already crowded sidewalks is a terrible idea and will surely lead to serious injuries to pedestrians. Apparently these vehicles can be 48 inches–the sidewalks on many side streets are less than that, especially given the trees, trash being put out for pick-up, restaurant sheds, light posts, and other items that already make sidewalks very narrow. Many delivery bicycles drive quickly and illegally on sidewalks, posing real dangers. Even though those bikes are narrow, with no giant cargo container in back, they routinely block sidewalks, force residents into the street to risk getting hit, and park at random, with little regard to basic safety. I am all for cutting carbon and pollution–an avid, daily bike rider here–but these electric-powered commercial vehicles do not belong on sidewalks, endangering pedestrians and degrading quality of life. These giant delivery bikes are, in actual fact, commercial motor vehicles–and as such, must remain in the street.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 1:48pm

• Arnold Bob

  in front of the building where I live a senior citizen using a walker was hit from behind by a bicyclist on the sidewalk. He had six broken ribs from this. The bicyclist ran off and was not held to account for what happened

  practically Everybody I talked to has either been hit by a bicycle on a sidewalk or hit by bicycle going the wrong way in a bike lane, or know somebody who has been.

  until and unless the city start enforcing laws about bicycles I want no more bike Lanes approved , I want no bicycles on the sidewalks like this, and I want no other privileges given to bicyclists. So until you and other city departments work TOGETHER to Implement real proper enforcement mechanisms and actually enforce them I want you to do nothing for the bicyclists.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 2:17pm

• Karen Luerssen

  This can sound like a good proposal but “the devil is in the details.” These commercial delivery bicycles will end up on the sidewalk. There are already enough machines aiming for pedestrians on the street and sidewalk. Community concerns should be heeded. The drivers of these vehicles should have state-issued drivers licenses. The vehicles should have government-issued license plates, front and back, so the crazy ones can be held accountable. And there should be serious enforcement of the transportation laws.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 4:02pm

• Tamara Flannagan

  Hells Kitchen has become a dumping ground for every stupid idea. Adding in more things that can take a person out is unreasonable. Right now we have mopeds, motorcycles, Rickshaws and wrong way bicycles on the bike lanes. Adding injury to insult would be adding 4 wheeled commercial bicycles.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 4:03pm

• Tom Harris, President Times Square Alliance

  Please see attached my letter regarding the draft regulations on cargo bikes released by the City Department of Transportation.

  Thank you,

  Tom Harris
  President
  Times Square Alliance

  Comment attachment
  Times-Square-Alliance-Regarding-Proposed-Rules-Regarding-Pedal-Assist-Commercial-Bicycles.pdf

  Comment added September 12, 2023 4:16pm

• Ken D

  The length of the e-bike plus trailer should not be shortened. This works contrary to the benefit of the workers who can carry less cargo and therefore make less deliveries and less tips.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 4:40pm

• Sofia Garcia

  Please do not allow pedal-assist commercial bicycles in NYC bike lanes. Many New Yorkers depend on bike lanes for commuting and getting around the city. Having these bicycles in the bike lanes will clog up the bike lanes, contributing to the rising amount of cars and vehicles already contesting the lanes. It will also put bikers in danger as these can go very fast. Please do not allow these.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 4:46pm

• Nolan

  These vehicles are bicycles in name only, and have no place clogging our already congested bike lanes, which should be used by people in motion, not parked vehicles with an engine and roof.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 5:00pm

• Jillian Lazaridis

  I have nothing against pedal assisted commercial bikes but NOT ON THE SIDEWALK. Unfortunately, the sidewalk is already overrun by parked E-bikes and E-scooters. There is no room for pedestrian traffic! Where are pedestrians supposed to go? Do we walk on the street with the traffic.
  Consequently, to allow cargo bikes up to 4 ft wide and 10 ft long, while making deliveries is ludicrous, i.e. so foolish, unreasonable, and out of place as to be amusing and totally ridiculous. I suggest that you should use the street and provide a parking area for “ALL DELIVERY VEHICLES ONLY” not just cargo bikes. Lastly, I would like to know
  1. The name of the company manufacturing these cargo bikes?
  2. Whose idea was it and how much money is the company paying him/her?

  Please give us back our sidewalk.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 5:25pm

• Emmab

  This is a horrible idea. The streets are dangerous enough with motorized vehicles flying in all directions, even on sidewalks, no regulation, no enforcing of the rules we already have. And a 4-wheeled vehicle is now a BIcycle?

  Comment added September 12, 2023 5:33pm

• Susan Kent, Chair, Community Board 2/Manhattan

  Please see Community Board 2/Manhattan’s attached letter of comment.

  In sum: We wish to bring to your attention a feature of the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) proposed new cargo bike rules which, if promulgated in its current form, represents not only serious safety issues but raises important questions of accessibility. Specifically, we refer to proposed amendment § 6 of the Traffic Rules to allow cargo bikes to be temporarily parked on sidewalks to permit the loading and unloading of property.

  The degree of risk created by the proposal in question is more than a mere inconvenience. The sidewalks of mixed-use neighborhoods such as those served by Manhattan Community Board 2 (MCB2) are heavily trafficked by pedestrians, both residents and shoppers, all day, every day. To permit the parking of cargo bikes, even for brief periods, would lead to blockage of the sidewalk to foot traffic. Pedestrians who wished to bypass cargo bikes parked on our sidewalks often would be forced into the street. Any person with a mobility issue unwilling or unable to walk in the street would be compelled to remain in place until the cargo bike was removed.

  The implications of this situation are plain. According to the DOT’s own statistics, the number of deliveries by cargo bicycle is massive and is only expected to further increase. Based on the volume of bikes on the road and the number of deliveries made on a daily basis, the presence of cargo bikes on sidewalks as heavily utilized as those in MCB2 will inevitably lead to situations where disabled persons will be denied unobstructed access to sidewalks. This situation is foreseeable and can be expected to recur. Sidewalk parking can therefore reasonably be interpreted as permitting violations of the rights of the disabled under the Americans with Disability Act, as well under the Human Rights Laws of each of New York State and New York City.

  Because the stipulated deadline for comments is not within MCB2’s customary timetable, MCB2 is prevented from taking an official position at this time. However, based on the widespread community opposition to the use of sidewalks in this manner, as expressed at MCB2’s September 7th Traffic & Transportation Committee meeting, we feel compelled to bring to the DOT’s attention this aspect of the cargo bike program and the potential consequences of failing to address its shortcomings. While the cargo bike program has much to recommend it, the convenience of utilizing sidewalks for temporary parking cannot be allowed to trump the rights of pedestrians to safe access and the rights of the disabled to reasonable accommodation.

  We respectfully request that DOT reconsider the proposed amendment to preclude the parking of cargo bikes in locations that deprive pedestrians of safe access. In this situation, DOT should prioritize the safety and accessibility rights of pedestrians and prohibit all parking of cargo bikes on sidewalks.

  Comment attachment
  DoT-Cargo-Bike-CB2-Comment-Letter-2023-09-12.pdf

  Comment added September 12, 2023 5:45pm

• Margaryta

  YES to have them on the roads, NO to have them on bicycle lanes. Electric bikes and scooters should have their own traffic lane, separate from both cars and from regular bicycles.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 6:42pm

• David Gilmore

  Please do not let pedicabs on city bike lanes. Bikers face enough risks from e bikes and mopeds. How about making bike lanes for bikes?

  Comment added September 12, 2023 6:49pm

• Landen Messner

  To whom it may concern,

  My objection is in regards to 4 wheeled “pedal assisted” commercial vehicles being allowed into bike lanes. Please direct this comment to the correct channel if I am not posting it in the appropriate place (that is, of course, if you actually CARE about your citizens objections, which itself is a long shot).

  Plain and simple, allowing these bulky commercial vehicles into the already crowded bike lanes is going to make biking in the city more unsafe. I encourage whoever is in favor of this proposition to take a ride on a Citi bike up First Ave during at 5:00pm. The bike lane is filled with delivery drivers, commuters, scooterers, students, and families (all of whom most likely RELY on the bike lane as their main path for transportation). Now, imagine if there was a 4 foot wide vehicle swallowing up the lane and going half of the speed of most other bikes around it. In case you haven’t noticed, people in New York don’t like to wait behind a slow walker, biker, driver, whatever it may be. They’re going to swerve into the main traffic lane to get around the commercial vehicle, putting themselves, drivers, and pedestrians at danger. There will be more accidents and most likely more deaths. I am certain of this. Please, do not allow this, the bike lanes are already ravaged enough by other delivery trucks blocking them, mopeds screaming down bike lanes the wrong way, and screaming crackheads.

  Sincerely,
  A Concerned Citizen

  Comment added September 12, 2023 7:01pm

• JimBob

  Great idea, but KEEP THEM OFF THE BIKE LANES. As so many have already written, the bike lanes are already dangerous with the various e-vehicles and motorized, gas-powered conveyances, please do not add more. These delivery vehicles should be in the car lanes.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 7:12pm

• Paul Shali-Ogli

  I support the expansion of pedal-assist vehicles on our roads, and this is a step in the right direction.

  When Bloomberg was Mayor he set out his vision of planyc 2030 and I feel this continues in that spirit. At that time pedicabs and pedal-assist vehicles were scorned by many due to propaganda from the right. However advocates at that time made the case for their inclusion in the city’s traffic ecosystem and the parallels here are palpable.

  Do not let cry babies from competing industry sway the council’s opinion, but rather look at the environmental benefit long term with a bipartisan lens.

  There are some issues that present themselves however, such as infrastructure and bike lanes. That trouble comes from 1) motorists not understanding the rights & rules of bikes and pedal-assist vehicles 2) poor bike lane maintenance. In order for this plan to work, the city must make a vastly increased effort of expanding and maintaining dedicated bike lanes, and educating drivers.

  Thank you.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 7:12pm

• Gerard Schriffen

  As a native New York resident of Manhattan and as a victim of being run down by a truck while crossing Second Avenue, I must still strongly oppose the proposed changes to NYC’s Traffic Rules regarding pedal assist commercial vehicles. This proposed rule change is ANTI-SENIOR. Our sidewalks are already the scene of countless bicycles, e-bikes, and motorcycles creating a very real threat to pedestrians, especially senior citizens who are unable to easily get out of the way of these vehicles on the sidewalks. If Commissioner Rodriguez concedes to the lobbyists for these unlicensed vehicles, many more New Yorkers will suffer serious injuries and fatalities. The facts bear this out. Our streets are overrun with bicyclists and e-bikers who ignore all traffic rules, have no means of being identified, and always flee the scene after seriously injuring a pedestrian. If our city is to grow and function, anarchy must not be allowed to rule our sidewalks, as it is now being allowed to do. The city is unable or unwilling to enforce the Traffic Rules now, this proposal will permanently destroy the safety of our sidewalks for parents, children, and all pedestrians, and only hasten the ever-growing exodus of normal folk from New York City.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 7:30pm

• Scott Shaffer

  Please no, the bike lanes already have enough food delivery drivers speeding down them.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 8:45pm

• Bill Kalish

  Bike lines are for bikes, not commercial traffic. As a resident of New York, I strongly urge the city and the DOT to reject this rule change

  Comment added September 12, 2023 8:47pm

• Jennifer W

  I already have a lot of difficulty navigating the sidewalks due to a disability, and I am not alone in that regard. E-bikes, especially ones this large, should follow the same rules as other vehicles and absolutely not be allowed on the sidewalks for any amount of time or any purpose. Reducing the number of large trucks is a great idea but commercial e-bikes should be replacing trucks — not pedestrians.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 9:47pm

• Mark Chiusano

  Team NYC DOT,

  Thank you for your continued focus on Urban Micro Mobility and working diligently on helping reduce NYC’s carbon footprint. There is no doubt we have barely made a dent in the amount of greenhouse gasses (GHG’s) NYC is responsible for, therefore, I applaud NYC DOT for recognizing the need for change.

  Collectively we must find ways to move the final mile deliveries from the more traditional method of vans/trucks and onto modalities that do not emit GHG’s. Generally speaking this means cargo e-bikes and foot couriers.

  I support the proposed rule changes allowing the use of pedal-assist cargo bikes up to 48 inches wide and the use of bikes up to four wheels. These rules would make it easier for businesses to use cargo bikes for deliveries, which would help to reduce traffic congestion and emissions.

  However, I am concerned about the proposed 120-inch length limit for cargo bikes. This limit would prevent some businesses from using cargo bikes, as they may need to carry larger loads. I urge the NYC DOT to reconsider this limit and allow cargo bikes to be any length, as long as they meet the other safety requirements.

  Other features the NYC DOT should consider is requiring cargo bikes to be equipped with lights and reflectors, and to have a bell or horn. This would help to make cargo bikes more visible to other road users and would reduce the risk of accidents. Here are some specific suggestions for the NYCDOT’s consideration:

  – Remove the 120-inch length limit for cargo bikes.
  – Require cargo bikes to be equipped with lights and reflectors.
  – Require cargo bikes to have a bell or horn.
  – Create a training program for cargo bike operators.
  – Provide financial incentives for businesses to use cargo bikes.
  – provide tax incentives for businesses to purchase cargo bikes, trikes, trailers and 4 wheel electric micro mobility equipment.

  I believe that these changes would make the proposed cargo e-bike rules more effective and would help to promote the use of cargo bikes in New York City, reduce congestion and reduce our carbon footprint.

  Respectfully,
  Mark Chiusano
  CEO
  Net Zero Logistics

  Comment added September 12, 2023 9:58pm

• Justin Bruce

  1. I support the increase in width for pedal-assist commercial ebikes to 48 inches, which will allow for greater safety, visibility, and delivery capacity.
  2. The overall length limitation of 120 inches would immediately harm the majority of existing commercial delivery programs. I would suggest a limitation of 120 inches for the bicycle and an additional 120 inches for a trailer.
  3. I support all efforts by NYC DOT to widen bike lanes and expand biking infrastructure throughout the city.
  4. I would urge the NYC DOT to consider common sense regulations on advertising, in line with current regulations on Taxis, Uber/Lyft, pedicabs, and MTA buses. Cargo bikes should be able to subsidize the cost of their deliveries by selling advertising – sustainable deliveries should receive the advertising benefits like many other commercial vehicles on the road.
  5. I support licensing operators utilizing this type of equipment and ensuring they have proper insurance.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 10:34pm

• Raj

  All electric and pedal assisted bicycles should require registration, and traffic laws enforced. I have been hit numerous times by delivery bikes, and Citi Bikers running red lights, riding on side walks, and going the wrong way.

  Comment added September 12, 2023 10:59pm

• Ryan Dirk

  While I like the fact that these take big box trucks off our streets, they should NEVER be on the side walk. Not ridden on the sidewalk, not parked on the side walk. full stop It’s hard enough dodging parked and moving delivery bikes as it is, let alone with a large box on the back of it.

  Also, please keep them out of the bike lanes as well

  Comment added September 12, 2023 11:40pm

• Neil Bleifeld

  Slow-moving, impossible to pass, four-foot wide motorized vehicles clogging our bike lanes? No, no, no thank you. And then blocking sidewalks? No, no, no thank you.

  Comment added September 13, 2023 4:33am

• Joseph

  NYC keeps creating rules to hurt the citizens. How will these large boxes not obstruct bikers from moving around the city safely. It beats the purpose of why bike lanes were is installed to begin with.

  Comment added September 13, 2023 7:06am

• Mark Chiusano

  Team NYC DOT,
  Thank you for your continued focus on Urban Micro Mobility and working diligently on helping reduce NYC’s carbon footprint. There is no doubt we have barely made a dent in the amount of greenhouse gasses (GHG’s) NYC is responsible for, therefore, I applaud NYC DOT for recognizing the need for change.

  Collectively we must find ways to move the final mile deliveries from the more traditional method of vans/trucks and onto modalities that do not emit GHG’s. Generally speaking this means cargo e-bikes and foot couriers.

  I support the proposed rule changes allowing the use of pedal-assist cargo bikes up to 48 inches wide and the use of bikes up to four wheels. These rules would make it easier for businesses to use cargo bikes for deliveries, which would help to reduce traffic congestion and emissions.

  However, I am concerned about the proposed 120-inch length limit for cargo bikes. This limit would prevent some businesses from using cargo bikes, as they may need to carry larger loads. I urge the NYC DOT to reconsider this limit and allow cargo bikes to be any length, as long as they meet the other safety requirements.

  Other features the NYC DOT should consider is requiring cargo bikes to be equipped with lights and reflectors, and to have a bell or horn. This would help to make cargo bikes more visible to other road users and would reduce the risk of accidents. Here are some specific suggestions for the NYCDOT’s consideration:

  – Remove the 120-inch length limit for cargo bikes.
  – Require cargo bikes to be equipped with lights and reflectors.
  – Require cargo bikes to have a bell or horn.
  – Create a training program for cargo bike operators.
  – Provide financial incentives for businesses to use cargo bikes.
  – provide tax incentives for businesses to purchase cargo bikes, trikes, trailers and 4 wheel electric micro mobility equipment.

  I believe that these changes would make the proposed cargo e-bike rules more effective and would help to promote the use of cargo bikes in New York City, reduce congestion and reduce our carbon footprint.

  Respectfully,

  Mark Chiusano
  CEO
  Net Zero Logistics

  Comment added September 13, 2023 8:33am

• Paul Shali-Ogli

  Additional comment:

  Please ignore all comments from dingbats who get mad at bicycles on sidewalks – because legally, bicycles are and should continue to be allowed on sidewalks.

  Sadly a great deal of new yorkers do not understand the rules around bikes, or play out the logic of those rules in their head.

  Many geriatric members of our society particularly seem to be confused about bicycles and mistakenly think, because they have been lifelong insufferable bullies who have never been put in check due to poor enforcement, that their cars have right of way over bikes, or that bikes operate under the same standard as motor vehicles. This is not correct, and these members of our society are actually quite dangerous as they can constantly be observed road raging and even intentionally hitting cyclists as they attempt to navigate through the traffic ecosystem.

  Please do not side with the “old men yelling at clouds” caucus.

  Pedal assist vehicles are safe. Bicycles are safe. Multi-ton cars and trucks with entitled buffoons driving them are the problem. Cops treating cyclists as second class citizens is the problem.

  Comment added September 13, 2023 9:55am

• Sarah Benesch

  While I understand the need for pedal-assist delivery to cut down on the number of delivery trucks on NYC streets, I’m concerned that the bill doesn’t explicitly state that cargo bikes would not be permitted to ride on sidewalks. As a matter of fact, in stating that they could temporarily park on the sidewalk, the bill implies that riding on the sidewalk is permitted. Our sidewalks are already choked with bikes, e-bikes, and mopeds, making walking treacherous. Adding yet another vehicle to the mix will only increase the danger to pedestrians, particularly older adults. Please consider the safety of pedestrians.

  Comment added September 13, 2023 10:15am

• Kevin K

  While increasing cargo bikes for delivery is a good solution to severe problem that has exploded with the rise of delivery culture, allowing these in bike lanes is down-right dangerous.

  Delivery trucks need to go. They are dangerous and are always driven recklessly, have poor visibility, increase noise pollution, clog our streets, and poison our air. Getting them off the street will lead to much more enjoyable city and save lives. HOWEVER, allowing these in the bike lanes is downright laughable, insulting, and dangerous.

  Bike lanes are for bikers, not for deliveries vehicles. Bike lanes are already crowded with delivery drivers on scooters and e-bikes FLYING through them. “Pedal-assist” cargo bikes are not standard pedal bikes, they are mini trucks. This is such a short-sighted solution that I’m sure the delivery-apps love. We cannot allow these mini trucks to impede on our already minimal bike lanes. If you want to solve congestion, get rid of the vast number of personal and ride-share cars on the road. Increase sidewalk space, widen bike lanes, and add more bus lanes. Mini delivery trucks are a small piece of the puzzle and let’s make sure we are using common sense regulations regarding them.

  Our streets need to be safer, the DOT needs to do more to protect cyclist. DO NOT ALLOW THESE CARGO VEHICLES IN OUR BIKE LANES OR ON OUR SIDEWALKS.

  Comment added September 13, 2023 11:22am

• Sara Lind

  Open Plans, a non-profit dedicated to safe and livable streets, respectfully submits this testimony regarding proposed rules on cargo bikes.

  As we look towards more sustainable, safe, and pedestrian-friendly freight options, cargo bikes are a successful solution that helps achieve these goals. Cargo bikes reduce the number of trucks on the street while providing an innovative method for last-mile delivery in our city; it is encouraging that these important devices are being codified.

  There are a number of concerns in the current rules as written that we would like to raise. Firstly, §6(p)(5)(iv) states that “A pedal-assist commercial bicycle may not be parked on a sidewalk…except temporarily for the purpose of and while actually engaged commercially in loading and unloading property.” While we acknowledge that infrastructure may not always support this, loading and unloading on the sidewalk is not a reasonable solution. Sidewalks are already overburdened with numerous uses, and many are extremely narrow, some measuring less than four feet. A full commercial loading and unloading operation, with a four-foot wide and ten foot long bike and all of the packages laid out on the sidewalk, would take away precious space from pedestrians. Explicitly allowing this behavior in the rules is likely to make it ubiquitous, even with other options, because it would be the easiest.

  The Department is creating Commercial Bicycle Loading Zones in these rules, which is an important step. Rolling out enough on-street loading zones to accommodate demand must be a top priority. In addition to these dedicated loading zones specifically for commercial bikes, the Department should further make explicit and encourage commercial cargo bikes to load and unload in existing commercial loading zones. To prevent friction among commercial bikes and commercial vehicles, signs should be updated to make it clear that commercial bikes can load and unload in those spots. Both commercial bike loading zones and general commercial loading zones must become significantly more widespread than they are today.

  Secondly, the current specifications for trailer length are not in line with some existing commercial trailers. Currently, the rules permit for a length of 120 inches (10 feet) despite some current devices being roughly 168 inches (14 feet) in length. As we pursue this policy, we cannot risk alienating the users who have already adopted this sustainable delivery mode. While standardization should be the goal, the Department should explore possible impediments to participation in a permanent program due to this change, as well as the potential for a phase-in period depending on when the rules go into place.

  More fundamentally, the city must build wider, two-way bike lanes to accommodate these new uses. Most current protected bike lanes are too narrow for regular bikes and large commercial cargo bikes to use together without serious friction. Current bike lane widths made it difficult and dangerous when cargo bikes pass a regular bike or vice versa. This is especially dangerous when either bike is traveling in the wrong direction. With more cargo bikes using these lanes, these issues will get much worse. Functional infrastructure will be critical to make this important program work.

  It is important to note that the implementation of rules for commercial cargo bikes should and will be iterated upon to produce the best version of the policy over time. As the rollout of these important devices is carried out, it will be important to observe the trends that emerge and iterate upon the rules proposed, as well as create new rules to best accommodate them.

  Cargo bikes are an important alternative to traditional truck freight, and we look forward to working further with the Department to best implement and iterate upon these important rules.

  Sincerely,
  Open Plans

  Comment attachment
  Testimony-Cargo-Bike-Rules.pdf

  Comment added September 13, 2023 12:55pm

• Mary Elizabeth Simpson

  According to the proposal “A pedal-assist commercial bicycle may not be parked on a sidewalk, while attended or unattended, except temporarily for the purpose of and while actually engaged commercially in loading and unloading property.” In other words commercial cargo bikes may drive and park on sidewalks.

  Sidewalks are meant for pedestrians, wheelchairs, baby carriages, kiddie bikes/trikes, and pets. Motorized commercial vehicles with cargo trailers would tear up the sidewalks quickly—creating trip hazards—since walks are not built for them. They will compete for curb cuts with baby strollers, wheelchairs, and pedestrians who need them. Curb cuts would probably quickly get destroyed by the trailers.

  The trailers are large enough to obstruct views. Will pedestrians dare peer around to see if another trailer is coming at 20mph? I live in a 293-unit building and residents get a lot of deliveries. I don’t know how to estimate how many cargo trailers it would take to bring everything daily, but quite a few for sure. Currently, I see electric UPS trucks bringing a lot of the packages. And presumably they will continue to come, because they bring a lot of stuff too large for the cargo trailers.

  Please keep motorized cargo bikes and trailers in the roadways where they belong.

  Also, I support buying local and in person to eliminate the need for these trailers and trucks to start with. Not to mention the mountains of cardboard boxes and plastic packaging left on the sidewalks on collection days.

  Thank you.

  Comment added September 13, 2023 1:11pm

• Senator Jessica Ramos

  Written testimony attached.

  Comment attachment
  23.9.13-Cargo-Bikes-Hearing-Testimony-Senator-Ramos-1.pdf

  Comment added September 13, 2023 1:36pm

• Bill Bruno

  Switching as much delivery traffic from trucks to lighter cargo e-bikes is long overdue. This will be an improvement from both a congestion standpoint and a safety standpoint.

  This should be done in conjunction with bringing in wider bike lanes and many more drop-off zones

  Comment added September 13, 2023 1:53pm

• Brendan

  I’m shocked that there was even a thought to allow these things on our already crowded sidewalks. This proves to me how disconnected politicians are from the day-to-day.

  This is not supportive of Accessibility standards, senior citizens, children, and other vulnerable communities.

  Comment added September 13, 2023 1:56pm

• Fawn Sullivan

  I am strongly against this. The sidewalks and bike lanes are already chaotic and dangerous due to e-bikes/mopeds. We need more regulations for e-vehicles, not less.

  It is mentioned that two of these “bikes” can carry the same load as one truck. If that’s the case they must be huge. These are not “bicycles”. This is an awful idea.

  Please stop getting into bed with big corporations like Amazon under the guise of protecting the environment. The only ones benefitting in this are big corporations and the politicians who take their money.

  Comment added September 13, 2023 2:23pm

• Diane Chester

  The proposed rule would allow these pedal-assisted commercial bikes to park on the sidewalks. I have two questions that aren’t addressed in the literature.

  1) How will they get on the sidewalk and to the place they want to park? If they use the curb cutouts at the corners will they then be walked or ridden to the place the driver wants to park them? As you know it is currently illegal for an adult to ride a bike on the sidewalk. With a pedal-assist bike that can go relatively fast and pulling a 4 foot by 10 foot trailer loaded with packages the impact if one of these hit a pedestrian would be enough to cause serious injury or death.

  2) Are there rules about where on the sidewalks, and on which sidewalks, they can be parked? On cross streets the sidewalks are often narrow and wouldn’t have space for one of these to park and for a wheelchair bound person to get by. Furthermore even on the wider sidewalks there are places, notably between the fenced in plantings and sidewalk cafe against the buildings, where a 4 foot wide cargo vehicle would block pedestian access.

  It this new rule is passed will there be a way for citizens to report the vehicles blocking the sidewalks? For this to work they would have to have license plates and the parent company — UPS or Amazon — would have to be responsible for any fines. They shouldn’t be allowed to say the cargo bikes are contractors and that they have no liability while they are reaping all the profits.

  Comment added September 13, 2023 2:31pm

• Pamela Wolff

  The increasing number of sidewalk obstructions in our Chelsea neighborhood has made safe pedestrian passage more and more problematic. We deal with sidewalk cafes, wifi towers, tree pits, lamp posts, mailboxes, planters at commercial sites, sidewalk advertisement boards, street vendors, and more. Cyclists, motorized scooters, skateboarders, even motorcycles feel free to use the sidewalks. Enough. These vehicles need to be licensed, registered and insured. Their drivers need to be trained, licensed, and uniformed. They should not use bike lanes, or park on our sidewalks.

  Comment added September 13, 2023 2:49pm

• Stuart Zamsky

  Please stop this outrageous nonsense. I have had a business associate knocked down in a bike path and he lost many of his teeth in the front of his mouth. The delivery person (who was going the wrong way) stopped to make sure he was “ok”, then left him bleeding and broken. It cost him over $20,000 in oral surgery. He was once a handsome and presentable person. Now when he smiles, it is obvious that he has a face full of fake teeth. While other cosmopolitan cities curtail e-bikes, why are we even considering relabeling ultra large delivery trailers as bicycles and allowing them to traverse SIDEWALKS. People already feel endangered by the lawless atmosphere surrounding two wheeled vehicles. The DOT and the police need to enforce current laws protecting pedestrians, NOT a loosening of regulations.

  Comment added September 13, 2023 3:18pm

• Richard Marans

  Our streets and sidewalks are becoming increasingly unsafe due to mopeds riding in bike lanes as well as bikes and mopeds riding on sidewalks, against traffic and contrary to bike regulations. The proposed cargo bikes will take up the entire bike lanes, ride on our sidewalks and, as we see in Hell’s Kitchen, ride with complete disregard for the safety of pedestrians and bike riders. Without a real plan for enforcement and rider education, these cargo bikes will only make our situation worse and lead to more injuries.

  Comment attachment
  Cargo-bike-testimony.docx

  Comment added September 13, 2023 3:43pm

• Gregg Zuman

  To: Director Mendes and the New York City Department of Transportation:

  The newly formed New York Cyclemobile Association (“NYCA”) humbly takes this opportunity to introduce itself, both to you and the world. As part of this introduction, we submit comments regarding your proposed “Pedal Assist Commercial Bicycle” (“PACB”) regulations.

  The NYCA’s purpose is to promote, propagate, and protect the cyclemobile industry of New York. This industry remains nascent in the United States of America; even New York City has seen limited adoption either by private or public entities to date. We believe the reasons are myriad, and largely to do with federal, state, and city laws, regulations, and policies. Sadly, today’s proposed regulations by DOT, if enacted, would take yet another government-created cudgel to our fragile yet growing local (and national) cyclemobile industry. It would have an impact similar to that unleashed by the 2020 NYS “e-bike” law (which de facto criminalized all cargo trikes) and the 2007 pedicab law (which criminalized pedal-assist pedicabs and turned the NYSDMV against all pedal-assist bicycles until 2018).

  We attach our complete letter in response to the DOT proposed amendments to DOT Traffic Rules addressing “pedal assist commercial bicycles.”

  The NYCA thanks you for your consideration of our comments. We look forward to engaging fruitfully with DOT and other industry stakeholders now and into the future.

  Best regards,

  Gregg Zuman
  Co-Founder
  New York Cyclemobile Association
  [email protected]
  212.239.0200

  Peter Meitzler
  Co-Founder
  New York Cyclemobile Association
  [email protected]

  Comment attachment
  NYCA-FINAL-Response-to-NYCDOT-Proposed-2023-PACB-Regs.pdf

  Comment added September 13, 2023 3:48pm

• Michelle G

  I support the idea of having more cargo bikes and less trucks. But then we need to introduce completely different lanes for those specifically. If they use the same bike lanes as your everyday commuter, it’s going to be an absolute nightmare and clog up the lanes, pushing cyclists into the streets or sidewalks to get around deliveries. I can see this being a total mess.

  Comment added September 13, 2023 4:46pm

• Eric McClure

  Please find attached testimony from StreetsPAC on the proposed amendments to the rules governing the operation of pedal-assist commercial e-cargo bicycles. Thank you.

  Comment attachment
  StreetsPAC-Testimony-to-NYCDOT-E-Cargo-Bike-Rule-091323.pdf

  Comment added September 13, 2023 4:48pm

• M Mart

  Unsafe describes the § 6 (5)(iv) of the proposed Pedal-Assist Commercial Bike rule that allows delivery people to ride cargo bicycles onto sidewalks for the purpose of unloading property. We implore you to consider the following facts: Cargo bicycles are up to 4 feet wide and can pull hundreds of pounds of property; such bikes do not quickly turn or stop; most sidewalks are only 12 feet wide; curb cuts are often hundreds of feet from building entrances; the sidewalks were intended to provide safe passage for pedestrians from vehicles (Pedestrians include children, elderly, handicapped, pregnant mothers, etc.); and, whether explicit or implicit, delivery people feel pressured to move fast and meet schedules. Instead, § 6 (5)(iv) should be removed and remaining part of the rule remain that, in substance, requires commercial bicycle drivers to park in the parking lane or designated loading zone for duration of loading and unloading of their property – similar to other businesses such as FedEx and UPS. Only an irresponsible legislator would implement the current rule.

  Comment added September 13, 2023 6:20pm

• Yanni Trittas

  Zoomo is appreciative of the opportunity to comment in support of this rule change by DOT. Zoomo is a full-service commercial micromobility platform founded by Mina Nada and Michael Johnson, on a mission to electrify every urban mile.

  Zoomo supports this rule change because it will;
  – Increase access: The use of cargo bikes enables a wider range of workers to participate in the delivery industry. By reducing barriers to entry (e.g., drivers license requirement), cargo bikes create more employment opportunities across the city.
  – Increase efficiency and earnings potential: Delivery workers can increase their productivity and efficiency thanks to the increased capacity and cargo bikes. More packages and more deliveries can result in higher earnings potential for riders.
  – Increase safety: Cargo bikes operate at lower speeds with better visibility for operators than vans and trucks in urban areas. A report found that more than 50% of crashes within NYC between 2019 and 2022 occurred on commercial corridors like truck routes.
  – Foster healthier work: Some companies have reported that their e-cargo bike riders take fewer sick days compared to traditional delivery drivers, due to the healthier working conditions.

  Full comments are attached, and have been submitted by email.

  Comment attachment
  Zoomo-DOT-Pedal-Assist-Commercial-Bicycles-Comment.pdf

  Comment added September 13, 2023 6:58pm

• E Mclaughlin

  Absolutely not. We do not need commercial vehicles in the bike lane. It’s chaotic enough as it is with e bikes, scooters, mopeds & motorcycles and cyclists.

  There is 0 difference of a pedal assisted vehicle blocking a bike lane to a care blocking a bike lane, except it’s an even narrower lane.

  Comment added September 13, 2023 7:53pm