Boston Metropolis Councilor Ed Flynn is pushing for town to ban mopeds, scooters and different e-bikes from getting used to make third-party meals deliveries, given the “safety crisis” that he says these drivers create by flouting site visitors guidelines.
Flynn on Wednesday plans to introduce an modification to a mayoral ordinance that was accepted by the Metropolis Council in April as a strategy to curb “dangerous” meals supply scooter operations. The town ordinance requires all nationwide third-party supply platforms, notably Uber Eats, DoorDash and Grubhub, to acquire legal responsibility insurance coverage for all employees using their platform with a view to obtain a allow to function in Boston.
Flynn’s modification would go a step additional, by banning these third-party drivers from utilizing motorized bikes to make deliveries. The town is “unrealistically able to provide the required enforcement” for “hundreds of operators at the same time,” beneath at the moment’s model of the ordinance, the councilor contends.
“For years, the City of Boston encouraged large third-party delivery companies to have drivers use two-wheel vehicles, while companies also incentivized workers to prioritize speed over safety to get more assignments and higher ratings,” Flynn stated Tuesday in an announcement to the Herald.
“The result: a significantly worsened pedestrian safety crisis with mopeds and e-bikes going over 20 mph through red lights and stop signs nearly every day. No reasonable person believes rules of the road can continue to be optional. It can no longer be the Wild West on the streets of Boston,” the councilor added.
Flynn stated residents have reported questions of safety with e-bikes and mopeds on a “near-daily basis.” He stated town has indicated that it was aiming to shift away from automobiles to two-wheeled autos for meals supply, “to decrease the number of cars on the road” amid the next demand for takeout.
Over the previous couple of years, the quantity of mopeds, e-bikes and different two-wheeled autos have tripled, Flynn wrote, “resulting in public safety and quality of life concerns for all residents and visitors.”
1000’s of 311 on-line experiences have been filed for scooter and moped points. Residents have reported motorized bikes dashing down bike lanes and sidewalks to keep away from site visitors, generally whereas going the unsuitable manner, blowing by purple lights and practically hitting pedestrians.
Drivers of these e-bikes are reported as being aggressive when confronted by pedestrians and different highway customers, per 311 experiences.
In July, two months after the mayoral ordinance was handed by the Metropolis Council, a resident hooked up two photographs of “aggressive scooter drivers riding down the bike lane on Boylston” Road, as a part of a 311 report.
“Good thing this isn’t an emergency,” the resident wrote, including, “The scooters are still out of control. If the mayor wants another four years, she needs to solve this problem now.”
4 days in the past, a resident posted on 311, “Almost got (expletive) killed by an e-bike going 30 mph on the sidewalk. When are you going to regulate these things? They are literally motorcycles.”
4 months in the past, a resident posted on 311, “(Expletive) illegal scooter drivers whipping up and down this park consistently delivering food. Anything the city can do about this? I was just nearly ran over by one of these selfish (expletive).”
Mayor Michelle Wu’s workplace didn’t instantly reply to a request for touch upon Flynn’s push to amend town’s third-party supply highway security ordinance.
The Herald’s requests for remark from UberEats, DoorDash and Grubhub weren’t instantly returned.
