Cities look to registration, regulation and infrastructure improvement to cut number of e-bike injuries and deaths
The increasing number of traumatic injuries from e-bikes in the United States has caught the attention of physicians, lawmakers, pedestrians and others.
While there is a shared concern about people recklessly riding the trendy machines, there are significant differences among roadway safety advocates about the best ways to prevent accidents – including whether the government should focus on improving infrastructure rather than regulating e-bikes.
“When we think about e-bike crashes and deaths related to e-bikes, the vast majority are cars and trucks killing people on e-bikes as opposed to people on e-bikes injuring somebody else,” said Alexa Sledge, director of communications for Transportation Alternatives, an organization dedicated to making New York’s streets safer.
“What we really want to see is an improved and expanded infrastructure to protect people that are biking, protect people that are walking and make sure that there are different protected areas for all types of transportation.”
