NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A6681
SPONSOR: Simon TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to bicycles
with electric assist
PURPOSE:
To authorize electric bicycles under New York law.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends section 102 of the vehicle and traffic law to include
bicycles with electric assist as a type of bicycle, but provides that
nothing in this article is intended to affect the ability of a local
authority to promulgate rules and regulations governing the operation of
bicycles with electric assist.
Section 2 defines a bicycle with electric assist by reference to the
model national three-class standard for electric bicycles.
Section 3 amends section 125 of the vehicle and traffic law to define a
motor vehicle to not include bicycles with electric assist
Section 4 amends section 159 of the vehicle and traffic law to define a
vehicle to not include bicycles with electric assist
Section 5 amends subparagraph b of paragraph 1 of subdivision (a) of
section 1202 of the vehicle and traffic law to permit to park on side-
walks in a manner complying with the Americans with Disabilities act,
provided that such bicycle or does not interfere with the normal and
reasonable movement of pedestrian traffic.
Section 6 amends the vehicle and traffic law by providing that any
violation under this chapter involving a bicycle with electric assist
shall not be grounds for impoundment of such bicycle, or any fees,
fines, or civil penalties be required to release any such bicycle to its
owner or the person operating it when seized by a government enforcement
entity except otherwise provided by state law. This section also amends
the vehicle and traffic law by providing that any fine levied for the
use of a bicycle for electric assist under this chapter by a user whose
use of such bicycle is under the ordinary course of business shall be
levied upon the employer and also states that the use of a bicycle with
electric assist shall comply with local rules, regulations, and ordi-
nances.
Section 7 prohibits the use of bicycles with electric assist on side-
walks except at a reasonable speed not more than five miles per hour on
or across a sidewalk in a manner that does not interfere with the safety
and passage of pedestrians.
Section 8 provides an immediate effective date.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ORIGINAL AND AMENDED VERSION:
JUSTIFICATION:
This legislation authorizes e-bicycles in New York. These zero-emission
devices are safe, sustainable, and affordable, unlocking the right of
mobility for a wide segment of New Yorkers. Because of the widespread
appeal of these devices, over 100 cities have witnessed substantial
reductions in automobile traffic that enables them to help achieve their
congestion, environmental, and safety goals.
The appeal of e-bicycles is driven by widespread adoption among demo-
graphics facing barriers to other modes of transportation, including
lower-income riders, female riders, and riders of color. Thousands of
food delivery workers in New York City rely on e-bicycles to earn a
living wage, while studies of shared e-scooter pilots show that almost
half of riders earn less than $50,000 a year. This bill will also
ensure that any fines that are associated with the normal course of
business for food delivery workers fall upon the business, and not the
workers.
New York is one of the last states left in the country that has yet to
legalize and define e-bicycles. This lack of definition has created
confusion over how these low-speed devices should be regulated, causing
New York cities to fall behind the rest of the country. This bill takes
the consensus approach that other states have taken in regulating e-bi-
cycles by treating them similar to bicycles. This approach has been
consistently embraced across the country because granting e-bicycles and
all the rights and duties of bicycles is an intuitive and simple
approach to legislation that is easiest for riders to understand, while
creating reasonable expectations for drivers, pedestrians, and others
sharing the road.
This legislation also preserves local authority over their own streets
and sidewalks.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2021-22: A2444 Niou - referred to transportation
2019-2020: A7995 (Niou) - referred to transportation
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
to be determined
EFFECTIVE DATE:
this act shall take effect immediately
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6681
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
April 28, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. SIMON -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Transportation
AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to bicycles
with electric assist
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 102 of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by
2 chapter 931 of the laws of 1977, is amended to read as follows:
3 § 102. Bicycle. Every two or three wheeled device upon which a person
4 or persons may ride, propelled by human power through a belt, a chain or
5 gears, with such wheels in a tandem or tricycle, except that it shall
6 not include such a device having solid tires and intended for use only
7 on a sidewalk by pre-teenage children. A bicycle includes a bicycle with
8 electric assist as defined in section one hundred two-c of this article,
9 provided that nothing in this article is intended to affect the ability
10 of a local authority to promulgate rules and regulations governing the
11 operation of bicycles with electric assist.
12 § 2. Section 159 of the vehicle and traffic law is amended to read as
13 follows:
14 § 159. Vehicle. Every device in, upon, or by which any person or prop-
15 erty is or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, except devices
16 moved by human power or used exclusively upon stationary rails or
17 tracks, and bicycles with electric assist as defined in section one
18 hundred two-c of this article.
19 § 3. Subparagraph b of paragraph 1 of subdivision (a) of section 1202
20 of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by chapter 206 of the laws of
21 2020, is amended to read as follows:
22 b. On a sidewalk, except that a bicycle may park on a sidewalk in a
23 manner complying with the Americans with disabilities act, provided that
24 such bicycle does not interfere with the normal and reasonable movement
25 of pedestrian traffic;
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09735-01-3
A. 6681 2
1 § 4. Section 1225-a of the vehicle and traffic law, as added by chap-
2 ter 222 of the laws of 1974, is amended to read as follows:
3 § 1225-a. Driving on sidewalks. No person shall drive a motor vehicle
4 or bicycle with electric assist on or across a sidewalk, except that a
5 vehicle or bicycle with electric assist may be driven at a reasonable
6 speed, but not more than five miles per hour, on or across a sidewalk in
7 such manner as not to interfere with the safety and passage of pedestri-
8 ans thereon, who shall have the right of way, when it is reasonable and
9 necessary:
10 (a) to gain access to a public highway, private way or lands or build-
11 ings adjacent to such highway or way;
12 (b) in the conduct of work upon a highway, or upon a private way or
13 lands or buildings adjacent to such highway or way[,]; or
14 (c) to plow snow or perform any other public service, for hire, or
15 otherwise, which could not otherwise be reasonably and properly
16 performed.
17 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
