Click-bait media outlets would have you think we should drop everything and do something about the scary threat of battery-powered bicycles (and yes, battery-powered motorcycles).
Generally an anti car person, but this is a 2020 ass “I’ve never lived in a city” type take. Every time I see one of the delivery drivers at a red light, I’m 100% sure they’re going to run it, and I haven’t been proven wrong yet. I’ve almost been hit multiple times in the past year in Boston
Make delivery companies pay if a driver is caught breaking the law while driving for one of their apps. It’s an open and shut solution that ends the delivery scooter problem and moves focus back onto cars where it should be
E-bikes are amazing and shouldn’t be in the same category here
Some auto drivers are better than others. Most, though, at least try to follow the laws of the road and you can make a risk assessment.
However almost ALL bicyclists/e-bicyclists pay absolutely no attention to any traffic rules whatsoever, and it’s truly dangerous to everyone on the roads.
I called in a pizza for pickup (on foot), and while crossing a wide avenue with my purchase had to pause two-thirds in for two consecutive cyclists going at speed in the wrong direction. Then I resumed my crossing when another cyclist ran the intersection in the right direction but against the light.
By the time my path was clear the light had changed and cars were headed toward me.
I could have been an auto statistic because of cyclist rule-breaking.
I walk a lot and this is what I see all the time.
Certainly cars need attention, but most operators of bikes and e-bikes are a menace and a nuisance.
I’m pretty spry and so manage to dodge trouble most of the time but not everyone is. This issue deserves immediate intervention of some kind.
I don't know where you live but most people are not “trying to follow the rules of the road.” Speeding is the default, people drive around with their eyes glued to their phones, and I haven't seen someone come to a full stop at a stop sign in my neighborhood all year.
Thanks for talking sense into this conversation. I had some guy shaking his fist at me for slowly riding my manual bike on the sidewalk. Sorry my bad, I should have been riding on the narrow road of speeding cars whose shoulder is filled with parked vehicles. There’s no reason a 5 minute bike ride to the grocery store should be that dangerous!
We've just been down this path here in Queensland, AUS. Media beat-up stories led to our newish State Government bringing in new laws which allow police to confiscate over-powered devices, ban under 16s from riding any form of e-bike and require everyone over 16 to have a drivers licence or learner's permit. It's like the anti-bike trolls on social media migrated into our government. When they did the committee review before the legislation was passed almost all the submissions said the laws were stupid, but they passed them anyway because they like to look tough and hate experts. I suspect that aside from the odd performative police blitz in certain central city locations they will never be enforced and people will just keep doing what they always did. Meanwhile this same government has cut the already tiny budget for infrastructure which would actually address the problem, which is that an increasingly diverse range of transport options is forced to share our narrow footpaths because they fear being killed by cars on the roads.
It’s interesting that the hierarchy is used (it’s often ignored in travel safety; traffic cone, anyone?) and then you provide the example of ban-da-bike, which is at the top, but say the discussion is at the bottom. Confused much?
Bikes, e-bikes do not need to be eliminated (banned) and neither do cars. And neither is it useful to compare the two modes. They serve different purposes and meet different needs.
Humans are terrible at understanding risk; that includes professionals and regular joes and it is a bit tricky comparing risks too.
We can do better at estimating risks, understanding them, and reacting to them.
And yes, cars concern me more than bikes, although both can kill operators and others.
Shared use trails are dangerous by design. Widening shared use trails to be wide enough for separated use, 1 ped & 2 bike lanes eliminates the majority of the conflict.
hear hear
Generally an anti car person, but this is a 2020 ass “I’ve never lived in a city” type take. Every time I see one of the delivery drivers at a red light, I’m 100% sure they’re going to run it, and I haven’t been proven wrong yet. I’ve almost been hit multiple times in the past year in Boston
Make delivery companies pay if a driver is caught breaking the law while driving for one of their apps. It’s an open and shut solution that ends the delivery scooter problem and moves focus back onto cars where it should be
E-bikes are amazing and shouldn’t be in the same category here
Some auto drivers are better than others. Most, though, at least try to follow the laws of the road and you can make a risk assessment.
However almost ALL bicyclists/e-bicyclists pay absolutely no attention to any traffic rules whatsoever, and it’s truly dangerous to everyone on the roads.
I called in a pizza for pickup (on foot), and while crossing a wide avenue with my purchase had to pause two-thirds in for two consecutive cyclists going at speed in the wrong direction. Then I resumed my crossing when another cyclist ran the intersection in the right direction but against the light.
By the time my path was clear the light had changed and cars were headed toward me.
I could have been an auto statistic because of cyclist rule-breaking.
I walk a lot and this is what I see all the time.
Certainly cars need attention, but most operators of bikes and e-bikes are a menace and a nuisance.
I’m pretty spry and so manage to dodge trouble most of the time but not everyone is. This issue deserves immediate intervention of some kind.
its well-known that the plural of anecdotes is facts lol
I don't know where you live but most people are not “trying to follow the rules of the road.” Speeding is the default, people drive around with their eyes glued to their phones, and I haven't seen someone come to a full stop at a stop sign in my neighborhood all year.
https://newsroom.aaa.com/2026/08/new-research-finds-most-drivers-think-speeding-is-normal-putting-everyone-at-risk/
Thanks for talking sense into this conversation. I had some guy shaking his fist at me for slowly riding my manual bike on the sidewalk. Sorry my bad, I should have been riding on the narrow road of speeding cars whose shoulder is filled with parked vehicles. There’s no reason a 5 minute bike ride to the grocery store should be that dangerous!
We've just been down this path here in Queensland, AUS. Media beat-up stories led to our newish State Government bringing in new laws which allow police to confiscate over-powered devices, ban under 16s from riding any form of e-bike and require everyone over 16 to have a drivers licence or learner's permit. It's like the anti-bike trolls on social media migrated into our government. When they did the committee review before the legislation was passed almost all the submissions said the laws were stupid, but they passed them anyway because they like to look tough and hate experts. I suspect that aside from the odd performative police blitz in certain central city locations they will never be enforced and people will just keep doing what they always did. Meanwhile this same government has cut the already tiny budget for infrastructure which would actually address the problem, which is that an increasingly diverse range of transport options is forced to share our narrow footpaths because they fear being killed by cars on the roads.
It’s interesting that the hierarchy is used (it’s often ignored in travel safety; traffic cone, anyone?) and then you provide the example of ban-da-bike, which is at the top, but say the discussion is at the bottom. Confused much?
Bikes, e-bikes do not need to be eliminated (banned) and neither do cars. And neither is it useful to compare the two modes. They serve different purposes and meet different needs.
Humans are terrible at understanding risk; that includes professionals and regular joes and it is a bit tricky comparing risks too.
We can do better at estimating risks, understanding them, and reacting to them.
And yes, cars concern me more than bikes, although both can kill operators and others.
It is about time that electric bikes that speed along recklessly along multi-use trails and pathways are banned!!
Shared use trails are dangerous by design. Widening shared use trails to be wide enough for separated use, 1 ped & 2 bike lanes eliminates the majority of the conflict.