LONG BEACH, NY \u2014 The Long Beach City Council heard public comment on a local law Tuesday that would regulate the use and storage of e-bikes, e-scooters and other vehicles in Long Beach, including along the city\u2019s boardwalk. <\/p>\n
The new ordinance would raise the maximum fine for electric vehicle infractions from $250 to $500 change code language pertaining to electric bikes and both electric and motorized scooters.<\/p>\n
The new ordinance would add e-bikes, e-scooters and motor scooters to the list of vehicles banned from riding on sidewalks, boardwalks, beaches and other pedestrian thoroughfares, which are set for designation by the city manager, per the ordinance.<\/p>\n
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Finally, the proposed ordinance would limit where bikes, e-bikes, scooters and other personal vehicles could be stored, barring the placement and locking of bikes, e-bikes et al \u201cin any manner that obstructs or interferes with the free flow of pedestrian or vehicular traffic, or blocks any entrance, exit, access way, walkway, roadway, park entrance, beach entrance, boardwalk access point, ramp, stairway, or other public right-of-way,\u201d the ordinance reads.<\/p>\n
During public comment on the proposal, multiple questions were raised about the city\u2019s compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). In one comment, Dave Scuden said the proposal would bring the city out of ADA compliance because it lacks an exception for people with disabilities who need to use motorized vehicles. <\/p>\n
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\u201cThis ordinance does not take into account anything from the ADA,\u201d Scuden said. \u201cThe ADA states that, under the ADA, a bicycle with electric assist can be classified as what\u2019s called an \u2018other power-driven mobility device.\u2019 The law requires that people with disabilities who use these devices be allowed in areas where the public is allowed\u2026If a municipality implements an ordinance banning devices, such as electric scooters, segways, e-bikes, without providing reasonable exceptions for people with disabilities, it faces significant legal risk. I don\u2019t want to see the city get in trouble.\u201d <\/p>\n
The city, however, said courts have upheld blanket e-bike prohibitions in crowded areas where e-bike use presents a \u201clegitimate and real safety issue.\u201d <\/p>\n
Meanwhile Dr. Gary Sipperstein, an octogenarian who has lived his whole life in Long Beach, said the city is already noncompliant with the ADA, specifically because of how many bikes are locked up to the metal railings on the ramps up to and down from the boardwalk. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we rebuilt the boardwalk we followed the best features and aspects of universal design \u2014 cutouts on the sidewalks, braille on the buttons for an elevator \u2014 and what we have is a metal railing along the paths that go up to the boardwalk, we have sloping ramps so that it\u2019s easier to get up and come down,\u201d Sipperstein said. \u201cOn a given Saturday in the middle of the summer, I\u2019ve counted about 20 e-bikes, regular bikes, chained to the railing. They\u2019re not parked on the boardwalk, they\u2019re parked in the middle of the ramps. How do you get down and how do you get up if you\u2019re a person with a disability? We do not conform right now with the ADA, not because we didn\u2019t build it right, because we\u2019re not policing it correctly.\u201d <\/p>\n
The state of Long Beach\u2019s bike infrastructure was also a topic of discussion Tuesday night, with council president Brendan Finn saying the city may want to look into additional bike racks in the west end of the city. <\/p>\n
Roy Lester, another Long Beach resident, said the discussion of bike safety in Long Beach comes down to bike lanes. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe problem is\u2026we don\u2019t have bike lanes. And if we had bike lanes, people wouldn\u2019t need to use the boardwalk,\u201d Lester said. \u201cBeing on the boardwalk is the safest place you can be. Most of the accidents we have with bikers are on the street with cars\u2026The cars are the dangerous thing for bikers\u2026that\u2019s where the danger is. I\u2019ve said for 20 years, let\u2019s get bike lanes.\u201d <\/p>\n
Another commenter, who identified himself as “James,” said it’s not just a question of bike lanes, but protected bike lanes, which establish a barrier between cars and bikes. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf we want to fix the sidewalk problem we have to address the root cause: People ride on the sidewalk because they don\u2019t feel safe riding on the street,” James said. “By investing in protected bike lanes, we’d solve multiple problems at once: We naturally pull bikes off the sidewalks, we protect kids and older residents who want to get around cleanly, and we ease the massive summer parking strain.” <\/p>\n
Eileen Heschen brought that infrastructure conversation a step further, suggesting that new store owners be required to install bike racks outside their storefronts. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe need more racks, because you have eliminated almost every spot where you can tie up your bike,\u201d Heschen said. <\/p>\n
DePalma confirmed Lester\u2019s assertion about how many bike accidents involve cars, while Lester decried the fact that bike lanes are often blocked by cars parking in them. <\/p>\n
Also raised during public comment was the question of enforcement, which city officials said would be done by officers mostly on-foot. Stopped e-bikes and scooters would receive a summons, LBPD commissioner Richard DePalma said. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a moving object, and usually the officer will be on foot, so it\u2019s not easy. But we do have methods to slow people down,\u201d DePalma said. <\/p>\n
After public comment concluded, the board voted and approved the e-bike ordinance. The vote was unanimous in its favor.<\/p>\n