NYC e-bike injury study highlights 'critical infrastructure deficiencies'

A study of New York City emergency room visits highlights the rise in injuries from e-bikes, scooters and other mobility devices, writes Sophia Leibowitz in Streetsblog NYC — but much of the media coverage around it is taking away the wrong lessons, Leibowitz says.

While some point to the study as proof that we need more restrictive e-bike laws, the study itself notes that "infrastructure redesign — including separated lanes and intersection protections — may offer the most immediate opportunity to reduce neurosurgical trauma burden." According to the study, 94% of cycling fatalities in 2023 happened on roads without protected bike lanes. "I am very much focused on built-environment policy because that has the most impact on this issue. Protected, not just sharrows, getting rid of parking, focusing on intersections and signage and bike lights, all of that, we need more," said Kathryn Burford, a post-doctoral researcher at Columbia University working on a similar study.

The study doesn't absolve rider behavior: "Beyond the need for street redesigns and car-reduction as a society-wide imperative, the study makes it clear that individuals should wear helmets and lay off the booze: 37 percent of riders without helmets had a brain injury, but only 23 percent of helmeted riders had such injuries."