By: Mario Mancini

As the New York Post first reported, City Councilman Justin Brannan is urging Lyft to add an age verification system that would keep kids younger than 16 from opening Citi Bike accounts or unlocking the service’s 20,000 strong fleet of e bikes. In a July 24 letter to Lyft chief executive David Risher, the Bay Ridge Democrat warned that the current honor system sign up process is “a disaster waiting to happen” for families who see tweens and early teens zipping through traffic on machines that can hit 15 mph with a single twist of the throttle.

Brannan told the Post he first took up the issue after a steady stream of worried parents contacted his office. “We make it far too easy for a 14 year old to rent a 70 pound e bike and blast down a busy avenue with no helmet and no clue,” he said. Under Citi Bike’s user agreement, riders must be 16 or older, but nothing in the smartphone app checks that statement against a photo ID or any other documentation; anyone with a phone number, an email address and a credit or debit card can create an account in seconds. “Self attestation alone doesn’t cut it,” the councilman wrote. “We need a guardrail before someone’s child is seriously injured–or worse.”

If Lyft does not act voluntarily, Brannan says he is prepared to introduce legislation that would force the issue. The New York Post first reported that the councilman’s draft bill would require app based bike share operators to verify age through scanned government identification–mirroring the process the company already uses to vet its ride hail drivers and replicating safeguards Lyft employs for its bike networks in Mexico City. Competitor Lime, which rents stand up scooters in Queens and the Bronx, already scans IDs and puts first time riders into “beginner mode,” limiting speed and restricting late night trips, the councilman noted.

Safety data underpin Brannan’s push. According to city statistics he cited, 76 percent of cycling deaths in 2023 involved e bikes–23 fatalities in all–and the fatal crash rate has quintupled since 2019. One publicized incident last year saw a minor on a Citi Bike e bike collide with another cyclist, sending the victim to the hospital; no police report was filed because the rider was under 18. In another case, a 16 year old sued Citi Bike after breaking her jaw in a Brooklyn crash. “Teenagers have always believed they’re invincible,” Brannan wrote to Risher. “That’s why adults have to build the speed bumps.”

The councilman also asked Lyft to release anonymized crash data broken down by age and gender so lawmakers can better understand risk patterns. While Lyft applies strict background and identity checks to its ride hailing drivers, the gap in its bike platform “makes no sense,” Brannan said.

A Lyft spokesperson confirmed to the Post that the company has received Brannan’s letter and is reviewing his requests; a Citi spokesperson declined comment but noted that the bike operator and the Department of Transportation met last month to discuss e bike safety. Brannan, meanwhile, is optimistic a “quick fix” is possible: “Lyft has the tools. The question is whether it will use them before another headline tells us we waited too long,” he told the New York Post.