What's happening
This bill requires passengers under 16 on electric bicycles to wear helmets and sit in separate seats, and prohibits anyone under 16 from riding class three electric bicycles.
Why it matters
Expands safety requirements for young passengers. by mandating that all passengers under 16 riding on electric bicycles must wear a helmet that meets state standards and be placed in a separate seat attached to the bike, rather than being carried in other ways.
Explicitly prohibits children under 16 from riding on class three electric bicycles. , which are the fastest and most powerful type, aiming to reduce the risk of serious accidents for younger riders.
Prevents infants (under one year old) from being transported on electric bicycles at all. , including in backpacks or carriers, addressing heightened vulnerability and potential for injury in this age group.
Places legal responsibility on adults. (aged 16 and over) to ensure compliance, meaning that adults who allow underage passengers to ride without a helmet or in an improper seat could be held accountable, potentially increasing adult supervision and awareness.
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Who cares
Families with children ages one through fifteen
The bill would allow these children to ride as passengers on class one or class two electric-assist bicycles if they wear helmets meeting the commissioner’s standards and sit in separate attached seats.
Electric-assist bicycle operators
The bill would prohibit carrying children under one as passengers on class one or class two bicycles, including in packs fastened to the operator.
Riders under sixteen
The bill would retain the ban on their operating electric-assist bicycles and expressly prohibit them from operating or riding as passengers on class three bicycles.
Headline styles
E-Bike Rules for Kids
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to transportation
- Referred to rules
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
6609
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
June 19, 2019
Introduced by Sen. RAMOS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to the operation or riding upon a bicycle with electric assist by persons under the age of sixteen
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 1242 of the vehicle and traffic law, as added by a chapter of the laws of 2019, amending the vehicle and traffic law relating to bicycles with electric assist and electric scooters, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 5294-A and A. 7431-B, is amended to read as follows:
2. Notwithstanding the provisions of section twelve hundred thirtyeight of this article, no person less than sixteen years of age shall operate or ride as a passenger upon a bicycle with electric assist unless such passenger is wearing a helmet meeting standards established by the commissioner and such passenger is placed in a separate seat attached to the bicycle with electric assist, and no person sixteen years of age or older shall allow any person less than sixteen years of age to operate or ride as a passenger upon such bicycle unless such passenger is wearing a helmet meeting standards established by the commissioner and such passenger is placed in a separate seat attached to the bicycle with electric assist. The provisions of subdivision seven of section twelve hundred thirty-eight of this article shall be applicable to this subdivision. Provided, however, that no person less than sixteen years of age shall operate or ride as a passenger upon a class three bicycle with electric assist, and provided that no person operating a class one or class two bicycle with electric assist shall allow a person who is under one year of age to ride as a passenger on a bicycle nor shall such person be carried in a pack fastened to the operator.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11288-18-9
S. 6609 2
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the same date and in the same manner as section 5 of a chapter of the laws of 2019, amending the vehicle and traffic law relating to bicycles with electric assist and electric scooters, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 5294-A and A. 7431-B, takes effect.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to the operation or riding upon a bicycle with electric assist by persons under the age of sixteen
Purpose
To authorize electric bicycles and electric scooters under New York law.
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1 amends section 102 of the vehicle and traffic law to include bicycles with electric assist as a type of bicycle and defines a bicycle with electric assist by reference to the model national three-class standard for electric bicycles.
Read the full memo (888 words)
Section 2 defines an electric scooter as a device weighing less than one hundred pounds that (a) has handlebars, a floorboard that can be stood upon by the operator, and an electric motor (b) is powered by the elec- tric motor and/or human power, and (c) has a maximum speed of no more than twenty miles per hour on a paved level surface when powered solely by the electric motor.
Section 3 amends section 125 of the vehicle and traffic law to define a motor vehicle to not include bicycles with electric assist or electric scooters, in line with how bicycles are defined.
Section 4 amends section 159 of the vehicle and traffic law to define a vehicle to not include bicycles with electric assist or electric scoot- ers, in line with how bicycles are defined.
Section 5 amends the vehicle and traffic law by adding new section 1242 to include additional provisions applicable to bicycles with electric assist. New section 1243 is added to allow the governing body of any city, town, or village to authorize and regulate shared bicycle systems or shared bicycle with electric assist systems within such city, town, or village.
Section 6 creates a new article 34-D applicable to the operation of electric scooters, adopting the framework of article 34 applicable to the operation of bicycles. It grants persons riding electric scooters the rights and duties to riders of bicycles, creates lighting and equip- ment requirements for electric scooters similar to bicycles, and prohib- its leaving the scene of an incident, similar to bicycles. The governing body of any city, town, or village would be allowed to authorize and regulate shared electric scooter systems within such city, town, or village.
Section 8 sets forth the effective date.
Justification
This legislation authorizes e-bicycles and e-scooters 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 achieve their congestion, environmental, and safety goals. For exam- ple, pilot e-micromobility programs in cities like Phoenix, Denver, and Portland have eliminated thousands of car trips from their streets everyday.
The appeal of e-bicycles and e-scooters is driven by widespread adoption among demographics facing barriers to other modes of transportation, including lower-income riders, female riders, and riders of color. Thou- sands 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.
New York is one of the last states left in the country that has yet to legalize and define e-bicycles and e-scooters. This lack of definition has created confusion over how these low-speed devices should be regu- lated, causing New York cities to fall behind the rest of the country in adopting this next generation of micro-mobility.
This bill takes the consensus approach that other states have taken in regulating e-bicycles and e-scooters - by treating them similar to bicy- cles. This approach has been consistently embraced across the country because granting e-bicycles and e-scooters all the rights and duties of bicycles is an intuitive and simple approach to legislation that is easiest for riders to understand, while immediately creating reasonable expectations for drivers, pedestrians, and others sharing the road.
This approach is also borne out by safety data. Studies of both e-bicy- cles and e-scooter safety have consistently shown them to be as safe or safer than bicycling. For example, the City of Portland has conducted a comprehensive safety study of shared e-scooters and concluded not only that e-scooters posed no more risk than any other mode of transporta- tion, but that their widespread adoption meant that they could in fact "contribute to a reduction in.serious injuries and fatalities."
This legislation preserves local authority over their own streets and sidewalks, allowing them to decide for themselves how to integrate these exciting new transportation technologies into their transportation networks.
Legislative history
This is a new bill in the Senate.
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect on the eightieth day after it shall have become a law provided, however, that sections three-a, four-a and seven-a shall take effect on the two hundred seventieth day after this act shall have become a law; provided further that section eight of this act shall expire and be deemed repealed two hundred seventy days after it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the additional, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed on or before such effective date.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.