Just as on the Upper East Side, E-bikes and mopeds terrorize the streets and sidewalks on Roosevelt Island. But now, there’s a difference: the UES officials are doing something about it.
by David Stone
The Roosevelt Island Daily News
Can You Hear the Echoes?
“My Dad used to ride a normal bike to and from work, but he’s terrified of the speed of these new e-vehicles,” said New York State Assembly Member Alex Bores. “My mom has Multiple Sclerosis, and she can’t dodge any of these vehicles riding on the sidewalk or running a red light.”
UES Lawmakers Bill To Rein In Reckless Mopeds and E-Bikes Signed Into Law By Governor Hochul
Here on Main Street, Roosevelt Island, it’s stop signs instead of red lights, but the two-wheel operators ignore them just the same. Sadly, though, so does RIOC through its expensively ineffective Public Safety Department.
A Personal Story About E-Bikes
Last Thursday, mid-afternoon, I spent some time reading on a bench across from Blackwell House. It’s one of the most serenely Roosevelt Island things you can do, but another Roosevelt Island thing changed the mood shortly thereafter.
Stepping into the crosswalk where West Main curls into the traffic circle, I stepped back from an E-biker racing through the stop sign. It wasn’t the first time, not by far, nor was it the first time I yelled at the driver.
“Hey, it’s a stop sign!”
With his girlfriend hugging him from behind, the guy yelled something derogatory back, ending in “old man!”
It’s just part of the e-bikes experience on Roosevelt Island. There’s virtually no enforcement at any stop sign or crosswalk on Main Street, and the riders know it. Some don’t even pause when there’s a public safety officer nearby. What are the chances, after all, that he or she will look up from their cellphones long enough to bother?
But this time was a little different…
When I turned back from watching the abusive rider, I realize that two public safety officers were right there, ten feet away. Out for an afternoon stroll, some fresh air, apparently.
“Why didn’t you guys do something?”
They glanced around, baffled.
“The guy just ran straight through the stop sign,” I said, throwing my hands up in exasperation.
“We were looking that way,” one PSO said, pointing down East Main.
And apparently deaf too.
This Can Change
Assembly member Bores’s bill is a start, not a finish. For the first time, it requires E-bike registrations before leaving the dealership. This makes them both trackable and accountable. Before, it was like rolling out an anonymous machine, free to ignore rules and terrorize pedestrians.
More is needed.
Andrew Fine, an NYC E-Vehicle Safety Alliance Steering Committee spokesperson, said, “We urge the legislature to take up our bills requiring all motorized e-mobility devices to be licensed, registered, insured and inspected. The safety of pedestrians and cyclists alike is dependent on measures to make these devices identifiable and accountable.”
E-Bikes on Roosevelt Island
There’s no doubt that PSD’s lackadaisical disregard for traffic violations on Main Street will result in serious injuries or deaths, if left unchanged. But since Hochul controls every aspect of RIOC, the momentum might carry over
It’ll take a lot. RIOC has repeatedly ignored complaints and warnings – from The Daily and many others. Disregard as ingrained as it is can’t be broken down by appeals leading to the belief that the state agency just doesn’t care enough.
Now, though, the community at least has Hochul on its side – for however long that lasts. Roosevelt Island isn’t the UES, after all. So, keep your fingers crossed and keep making noise about it until somebody listens, hopefully before anyone else gets hurt.
Howard Polivy, the Man Who Never Left
There is a particular rhythm to board meetings. Once you have sat through enough of them, they begin to blend together. The agenda appears. The minutes are approved.
