By: Michael Miller and Ligia Guallpa  – NYDailyNews.com

The narrative around street safety all too often pits one group against another: Pedestrians and drivers admonish e-bike riders for traffic violations. E-bike riders berate drivers who swerve into the bike lanes.

The reality is this: while some attempt to divide us by how we navigate the city, we are all users of our streets, subject to the whims of those who benefit most from speed and chaos — the app companies. We should know.

As a rabbi who was recently struck by an e-bike rider traveling at high speed in the wrong direction, with surgically implanted leg hardware to prove it, and the executive director of Worker’s Justice Project, which advocates for delivery workers citywide, the expectation is for us to stand in opposition to one another.

We’re going to do better than that. We are united in the belief that to solve the problem of havoc on our streets, we need to look with clear eyes at its root cause: All of us.

We are all addicted to the convenience of touch-of-a-button delivery. Legislation cannot place the onus exclusively on delivery workers with no recognition of the economic environment in which they work.

Today, we stand together in support of innovative City Council legislation that will help bring order to our streets by regulating the third-party delivery companies that prioritize speed to maximize profits.

In the same way that the city regulated rideshare companies when they first came on the market more than a decade ago, the bill offers a new licensing structure for third-party delivery apps, putting the burden on companies who stand to make money from the size and 24-hour nature of our city as well as the craving for near-instant dispatch.

It brings the delivery landscape further into the daylight at long last while protecting workers’ individual rights and safety:

Licensed companies will be required to ensure that delivery workers use legal devices, including by providing them directly to their workers if they need them — since no one wants to spend all day on top of a ticking bomb, or bring one into their family home.

Additionally, companies will be required to ensure that delivery workers complete a safety training course and follow traffic rules — establishing a baseline understanding of expectations so that even those new to our city have the knowledge base they need to succeed.

Crucially, companies will also be required to share trip and other data to ensure compliance — because data is power, and the city can’t manage what it can’t measure. Ultimately it establishes penalties for companies that fail to comply with any of these requirements, with the most extreme scenario including the removal of a license to continue operating in one of the world’s biggest and most dynamic markets.

And we call on the Council to go one step further, equipping workers more fully with the tools to challenge the algorithmic pressures they face by creating rules around deactivation.

Too many workers who slow down, alter routes or refuse orders in dangerous conditions to prioritize safety have been deactivated. That’s unjust, and it adds to the chaos we all feel.

Workers shouldn’t have to choose between their safety and their job. As a city, we shouldn’t have to choose between our safety and quick delivery.

A supplement that guarantees deactivation protections will help workers feel secure in slowing down, bringing the intent of this legislation more fully to bear.

For too long, the apps have operated in a sort of legal gray zone without much oversight, as they chase a buck on the backs of hardworking delivery workers forced to make choices they wouldn’t otherwise make for fear of being locked out, and at great risk to pedestrians and other road users.

This bill will help put an end to that.

Even if it becomes law, there will still be room for law enforcement in this conversation. No one should run red lights or go the wrong direction down a one-way street. But to treat law enforcement as the first and last form of defense undersells the broader landscape.

As representatives of two sides of the same coin, we urge the Council to introduce and pass this proposed legislation to intelligently regulate a growing and vital delivery industry while restoring a sense of safety to pedestrians, riders and drivers alike. (NYDailyNews.com)

This article originally appeared in the New York Daily News.

Michael Miller, a rabbi, is the former CEO of the Jewish Community Relations Council. Guallpa is the executive director of the Worker’s Justice Project, which launched the Los Deliveristas Unidos campaign in 2020 to protect the rights of NYC’s 65,000 app delivery workers.

Tragic E-Bike Collision Claims Life of Brooklyn Pedestrian in Greenpoint: Ongoing Concerns Over E-Bike Safety Intensify

Edited by: TJVNews.com

A devastating accident on a Brooklyn street has once again cast a spotlight on the growing dangers of e-bikes in New York City. As reported by VIN News, a 49-year-old man, identified as Luis Cruz, tragically lost his life on Friday night after being struck by an electric bicycle while attempting to cross a street in Greenpoint.

According to the information provided by VIN News, the incident occurred at approximately 7:45 p.m. on Franklin Street near Green Street, a bustling area in the heart of Greenpoint. Cruz, who was walking across the roadway, was hit with significant force by an oncoming e-bike. The impact left him with severe head trauma, prompting emergency responders to rush him to Bellevue Hospital in critical condition. Despite medical efforts, Cruz was later pronounced dead at the hospital.

The e-bike rider involved in the crash remained at the scene, according to NYPD statements cited by VIN News. Authorities have confirmed that no criminal charges have been filed and no criminality is currently suspected in the incident. Nevertheless, the NYPD cordoned off the area, closing Franklin Street for several hours to allow investigators to thoroughly examine the circumstances surrounding the fatal collision.

This tragic event has fueled renewed concern and public scrutiny over the proliferation of e-bikes on New York City streets. As VIN News reported, city officials have faced mounting pressure in recent months to implement more robust safety regulations and enforcement mechanisms in response to reckless e-bike riding and related accidents.

The incident is not occurring in a vacuum. For months, the Jewish community in nearby Williamsburg has been sounding the alarm over the hazards posed by electric bicycles. As VIN News has previously documented, community leaders and residents have voiced their frustrations over e-bike riders weaving dangerously through pedestrian-heavy areas, often disregarding traffic rules and endangering vulnerable pedestrians. Their warnings have now taken on a grim resonance in the wake of Cruz’s death.

The growing popularity of e-bikes—favored for their affordability, speed, and efficiency—has come with a steep cost: an uptick in accidents, injuries, and fatalities, many involving pedestrians. Critics argue that while e-bikes offer a convenient transportation alternative, city infrastructure and enforcement have failed to keep pace with their rapid rise. As highlighted in VIN News coverage, many e-bike operators are not licensed, and in several cases, ride on sidewalks or in the wrong direction, creating chaotic and often hazardous conditions.

This latest fatality in Greenpoint serves as a stark reminder of the urgent need for a citywide safety overhaul, particularly in neighborhoods where foot traffic is heavy and street crossings are frequent. Advocates are calling for stricter e-bike regulations, enhanced traffic law enforcement, and more robust public education campaigns to promote rider responsibility.

As the city mourns the loss of Luis Cruz, the tragic circumstances surrounding his death are likely to intensify calls for action—not just from civic leaders and transportation officials, but from communities across Brooklyn and beyond. VIN News will continue to monitor developments surrounding this incident and the broader debate over e-bike safety in New York City.

For now, one question looms large: how many more lives must be lost before real change is enacted?