Jenifer Rajkumar intros Priscilla’s Law to register and license e-bikes, e-scooters

BY THE VILLAGE SUN | If you can’t pass a bill in New York City — try Albany.

The NYC E-Vehicle Safety Alliance, Assemblymember Jenifer Rajkumar and state Senator Joseph Addabbo Jr. on May 22 announced the introduction of Priscilla’s Law at a rally on the staircase inside Albany’s Capitol Building.

The first bill (A-9092 and S-9028) of two sponsored by Rajkumar and co-sponsored by Assemblymember Rebecca Seawright requires all bicycles with electric assist and electric scooters to be registered with the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles “and have a license plate affixed [to them].” Electric Citi Bikes would be included under the bill.

The legislation is named for Priscilla Loke, 69, the deputy director of the Chinatown Head Start, who was killed after a cyclist riding a heavy electric Citi Bike ran a red light on Sept. 5, 2023, and struck her in the crosswalk at Grand and Chrystie Streets as she was walking back to work. She was knocked to the ground, struck her head and suffered severe head trauma. She died from her injuries at Bellevue Hospital two days later. Police eventually tracked down the cyclist — after initially having let him leave the scene — and he was given a ticket for blowing through the red light.

At the announcement of the bill in Loke’s name, her dear friend Sook Ling Lai, the Head Start’s director, urged that Loke’s death not be in vain.

The politicians and advocates said deaths and injuries from e-vehicles — for pedestrians and riders alike — will only continue to grow if riders are not held accountable for abiding by the rules of the road. License plates would mean unlawful riding could be caught on camera.

A second bill (A-9114), again sponsored by Rajkumar and co-sponored by Seawright, has the same two provisions as the first but also requires electric-assist bikes and e-scooters to be inspected and have liability insurance. Rajkumar refers to both bills as Priscilla’s Law and calls them a package.

“I authorized this commonsense legislative package to address the reckless use of e-bikes, one of the biggest issues at the top of New Yorker’s minds,” she said. “Last year we witnessed a record number of deaths from e-bike riders disregarding traffic laws and using dangerous, reconditioned batteries. My package honors the memory of Priscilla Loke and all the victims of e-bike collisions and fires by providing the same requirements for e-bikes as other motorized vehicles: license plates, insurance and inspection. Working with my partners at EVSA, we are going to create safe streets and support the responsible use of this emerging mode of transit.”

Seawright added, “Every day, I hear from constituents who are reporting near-accidents, wide-ranging injuries due to collisions, improper usage or malfunctions of e-vehicles and mopeds. No one should have to fear for their own safety in navigating their own streets and communities.”

“There are 74 victims of e-vehicle violence in EVSA,” Janet Schroeder, one of the group’s steering committee “core four,” said of the group’s members. “Seventy-two of the riders who crashed into these pedestrian and cyclist victims fled the scene. With visible license plates, these fleeing riders will more easily be tracked down.

“This is not about penalizing anyone, it is about changing behavior,” said Andrew Fine, another EVSA steering committee member. “The days of reckless riding on our streets must be put behind us for the sake of all, including the riders themselves.”

Dr. Daniel Murphy, chief of emergency medicine at St. Barnabas Hospital in the Bronx, said the fallout of e-vehicle chaos in New York City is escalating.

“We are seeing consistent, steady numbers of severe injuries, including fatalities, from e-vehicle and moped crashes in the emergency room. Full stop,” he said. “As far as numbers are concerned, the number of injuries and the acuity of these injuries are getting exponentially worse.”

Rajkumar’s bill to license and register e-bikes echoes New York City Councilmember Robert Holden’s bill, Intro 0606-2024. However, despite EVSA’s strong advocacy, Council Speaker Adrienne Adams declined to bring the bill up for a vote last year, forcing it to be reintroduced this year and for its co-sponsors to be collected all over again. Currently, the bill boasts 31 co-sponsors, a majority of the 51-member Council.