Saturday, June 29, 2019
Lawyer Jesse Halfon explains legal liability re scooter laws. Caveat emptor
https://www.citylab.com/perspective/2019/06/electric-scooters-dockless-regulations-liability-helmet-laws/592861/
STUDY-Hunter College Grad Ctr. Helmet Use:Type of Cyclist
Use of Helmets
Altogether, over two-hs of the cyclists were observed wearing helmets. The
use of helmets varies considerably by type of cyclist. Fiy-four percent of male
commercial cyclists, who are mandated by law to wear helmets, were found to be
compliant with this law.
4
Notably, general riders were far more likely to wear a
helmet than Ci" Bike riders (45.2% vs. 30.3%). There is also a gender gap in the
use of helmets among both general riders and Ci" Bike riders. Among the general
riders, females are more disposed to wearing a helmet than their male
counterparts by a margin of 52.1 percent versus 44 percent. Among the Ci" Bike
riders, the gender gap remains but is considerably narrower (33.8% vs. 29.1%).
Table 2. Helmet Use by Type of Cyclist
Helmet Use by Type of Cyclist
Helnet use Male Gen'l Female GR Male Citi Female Ci Male Total
Rider Rider Rider Commercial
Yes 44% 52.1% 29.1% 33.8% 54.4% 43.1%
No 56% 47.9% 70.9% 66.2% 44.6% 56.9%
Total 100% 100% !00% 100% 100% 100%
1831 328 875 284 837 4155
Helmet Use by Type of Cyclist
Helnet use Male Gen'l Female GR Male Citi Female Ci Male Total
Rider Rider Rider Commercial
Yes 44% 52.1% 29.1% 33.8% 54.4% 43.1%
No 56% 47.9% 70.9% 66.2% 44.6% 56.9%
Total 100% 100% !00% 100% 100% 100%
1831 328 875 284 837 4155
Friday, June 28, 2019
20 Most Bike Friendly Cities -Wired Magazine NYC Conspicuously MISSING
The 20 Most Bike-Friendly Cities on the Planet, Ranked
Although most cities cited are European-The Big Apple
is conspicuously MISSING.
Although most cities cited are European-The Big Apple
is conspicuously MISSING.
14th St plan "lacking in rationality" Taxis vs FHV
OPINION: 14th St. plan favors Uber and Co. over taxis
BY CAROLYN PROTZ AND SERGIO CABRERA | As The Villager has reported, city officials have developed a carless plan for 14th St. in order to mitigate the impact of intermittent reductions of service on the L-train line. The plan has generated considerable anger among a number of local and advocacy groups who have now filed suit against the city. (https://www.thevillager.com/2019/06/suit-slams-14th-st-bus-plan-urges-court-action/)Somewhat lost in all of the controversy surrounding the lawsuit is the fact that the city has given for-hire-vehicles like Uber and Lyft (F.H.V.’s) — but not New York City taxis — special dispensation to traverse 14th St. in order to pick up passengers. This special
Taxi
medallion owners charge the city’s proposed 14th St. plan unfairly
favors for-hire vehicles, which passengers can contact to pick them up
on 14th St. Under the plan, yellow cabs would not be able to “cruise”
for fares on 14th St. — though taxis do have an app called Curb.
From a taxi standpoint, the lawsuit’s indictment of the plan was dramatized the other day at a City Council hearing on the role of New York City and the Taxi and Limousine Commission in the decimation of the value of the taxi medallion. Councilmembers took turns excoriating the T.L.C. for its willful blindness and collusion in the decline of the industry. (https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/24/nyregion/taxi-medallion-investigation.html)
One of the central complaints made by medallion owners was that T.L.C. aided and abetted the decimation of the taxi medallion by exempting F.H.V.’s from many of the same strict regulations that were mandated for taxis. (https://www.crainsnewyork.com/op-ed/real-killers-taxi-medallions)
Perhaps the most egregious example was the T.L.C. allowing F.H.V.’s access to the Central Business District — otherwise known as the “Taxi Exclusionary Zone” — for the price of a $250-a-year license when medallion owners had paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for that very same right.
Another exemption involved the requirement for wheelchair accessibility. The city mandated that 50 percent of all taxis must be wheelchair accessible by 2020 — a requirement that places extra financial burdens on cabbies. Yet, for more than four years, Uber and Lyft rejected the demands of advocates, and resisted all legal efforts at compliance. (https://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/stuck-neutral-de-blasio-leaves-wheelchair-users-curb-article-1.2957859)
In the end, a watered-down compromise was reached that falls far short of the taxi mandate, one that gives Uber and Lyft another unfair competitive advantage. (https://www.gothamgazette.com/opinion/7362-the-city-s-bogus-compromise-with-uber-would-hurt-riders-with-disabilities)
What aggravates us to no end, is that for the past four years, taxis (but not the F.H.V.’s) have contributed hundreds of millions of dollars to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority — 50 cents for each passenger fare. At the same time, as most transit experts agree, the F.H.V.’s have been draining resources and riders off of the buses and trains. Allowing a 14th St. exemption to the culprits who have made mass transit worse is really a case of adding insult to injury, not only to taxis, but to mass transit riders, as well. (http://fortune.com/2017/10/13/uber-lyft-public-transit-ridership/)
The bottom line is that if 14th St. is to be car-free, then there should be no exemption for any entity, but especially not for one that has played a major role in making congestion in New York City so much worse. (https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2017/02/27/its-settled-uber-is-making-nyc-gridlock-worse/)
However, if any exemption is to be created, it should be given to the taxis — whose numbers have been capped since 1937 — and which have always been seen as a protected public franchise and an iconic symbol of New York City.
Protz and Cabrera are taxi medallion owners
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Brownsivlle Cyclist fatlly struck #`13 2019
For
the second time in 4 days and the 13th this year a bicyclist has been
fatally struck on the streets of New York City. Ten bicyclists were
killed in all of 2018. In tonight’s incident a 57-year-old man was hit
at high speed in Brownsville, Brooklyn.
Gary Baumgarten
Thursday, June 27, 2019
It's Not Easy Being Green editorial
- IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREENIt's not easy being green. Or NYPD blue. But the color of congestionis choleric.The bike build out was ballyhooed as “visionary”. A jewel in the crownof billionaire Mayor Michael Bloomberg's” luxury destination” It has beenan exercise in zealotry. Resulting in world class congestion and a publicsafety crisis.An epidemic of scofflaw cycling has produced numerous injuries,deaths and too many harrowing close calls to count.Surely this was not the intention of Mayor Bloomberg or thevisionaries.Transportation experts and laymen alike knew that importing Europeanbike programs was misguided. The logistics of street width and populationdensity are far different.It's like trying to force a square peg into a round hole. It's not easybeing green.Bike lobbyists Transportation Alternatives acquired undue politicalinfluence. The DOT under Commissioner Sadik Khan avoided anenvironmental impact study. She also refused to join a task force-a cooperative effort-including the NYPD and FDNY-where realitywould have been confronted.Where a responsible bike culture might have been established.NYPD enforcement was undermined by years of being kept ona short mayoral leash. Rogue cyclists acquired a sense of entitlement.Helmets were not mandated. Licensing fought.The outcry to havedelivery cyclists-often employing motorized truck bikes-was deridedas oppressive.All this side stepping of reasonable regulation enabled to “promoteridership.” The proof is in the pudding. New York has been takenfor a ride.The Citibike program enables people to rent a bike. Avoiding repairsand maintenance. The lack of repair work and increasing commercialrent puts small bike shop owners out of business.Bike lifers who helped build the bike culture.The enterprise is now controlled by The Related Companies.The blue bikes have mechanical problems. Renters are less concerned about rough riding,repairs and personal safety.Tourists unaccustomed to city traffic take a ride on the wild side. Plunging into bike bedlam and motorists with congestion patience failure. A trickle of lawsuits indicates it may expand into a costly stream. According to a January 2018 study by Partnership for New York congestion will cost the city 100 billion dollars by 2013.The inability of emergency vehicles to negotiate bike lane squeezed streets can cost lives.There are over 3 million commuters who use public transportation 12 months a year. Around 80,000 cyclists-most of whom are young and healthy commute-weather permitting.What's wrong with this picture? A case of the tail wagging the dog.Bike lanes have shrunk vehicular lanes., One million more residents increases density. 50,000 more ride share vehicles. Voila world class congestion. First the public was slammed by rampant lawless riding. Recently congestion pricing was passed. Under whose control and exact terms still uncertain. What is certain is that the public has been hit by a tax. The result of unwise planning and political complicity. The bicycle advocates have conflated “going green” with an ends justifies the means bike build out. A dominoe effect has unleashed a bevy of problems. Tunnel vision disruptive. Politicians who are happy to accept campaign contributions while soliciting votes from a vociferous bike lobby say that it is an enforcement problem. Putting the onus on the NYPD whose authority has been undermined. What can be done? Ideally a comprehensive city plan. In the near term an independent study needs to be conducted. It would objectively assess the costs and benefits. Current and future of the bike build out. Thus providing reason and balance. The scooter lobby and two wheeled motorized vehicles are already bringing another layer of lawlessness. Ultimately it is in part an enforcment issue and needs to be treated as such. It deserves firm mayoral support. The NYPD needs to be given the tools and manpower to accomplish it. Use a compstat approach. Establish a unit that coordinates with local precincts. Cops on bikes. Cops on scooters. Licensing would provide revenue and a means of identification.Enforce the laws regulating delivery agents and the businesses that employ them. Enforcement at night is imperative. Finally enforcement must be smart, sufficient and sustained..
Poem-Close Call Bike Accident
This morning on First Ave and 12th St a bike rider went down.
On
his own. I walked over as he pulled his bike to an island and leaned
against a tree.
A road worker came over..The rider said he hit a pot
hole. "Wasn't paying
attention."
The road worker pointed out that he hadn't been riding in the bike
lane.
That area is smooth. Prepared to accommodate cycling.
Biker nodded his head. Holding his right thumb. Gathering himself.
Smart to be wearing a helmet.
Fortunate that a car hadn't been close enough to hit the downed cyclist.
Something to think about.
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It reminds us again that for all the propaganda released about this plan, it was, and is, a disastrous plan for anybody but the lobbying groups that have deep pockets and influence our representatives.
I wonder who (possibly), in the current city administration, was promised a job, from Uber or Lyft, after they leave their current government one or maybe campaign contributions to seek higher/other office?