NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch's push to criminalize low-level traffic violations for cyclists, particularly regarding e-bikes, was presented without data justifying the need for such measures. During a City Council hearing, Tisch argued that current traffic tickets were ineffective due to the lack of licensing for e-bikes, insisting that criminal summonses are the only available enforcement method. However, her assertion faces scrutiny as evidence shows a decline in e-bike-related crashes and injuries, contradicting her data-driven claims and raising questions about the necessity and rationale for her policy changes.
I am eager to work with this Council on a legal framework, a new enforcement paradigm for e-bikes in New York City. But under the current law we had two options: one was B summonses [traffic tickets] and one was [criminal] summonses.
The Commissioner has failed to provide the public any data showing that cyclists (e-bike and otherwise) who were given traffic tickets weren't paying them — the stated rationale for the criminalization push.
Tisch was nothing if not consistent in her answer, repeating time and time again that criminal summonses are the only option until the Council gives her a different enforcement regime.
New stats obtained by Streetsblog show that there was a dramatic decrease in e-bike-caused crashes and pedestrian injuries between Jan. 1 and April 30 this year compared to the same period in 2024.
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