General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Bloomberg to ban e-bikes [View all]markpkessinger
(8,392 posts). . . As someone who, a few years ago, was hit by a bicycle messenger, you won't convince me that they are inherently more or less dangerous than a bicycle. I was walking south along the west side of Third Avenue. As I crossed East 54th Street, which runs westbound one way, my primary concern traffic-wise was from traffic turning onto 54th from Third Avenue. I did a quick, peripheral glance to my right, and saw nothing coming, but, since there was no reason to expect any eastbound traffic emerging from 54th Street, focused most of my attention on any traffic on Third Avenue that might be looking to turn. And I had the "Walk" sign. I crossed, my eyes still looking slightly to the left, when . . . WHAM . . . this bicycle, operated by a bicycle messenger peddling like he was in the Tour de France, hit the right side of my body. The force of the impact threw me up in the air, and then down on my left side, arm outstretched above my head, so force of my full body weight came down on my ribcage, resulting in very badly, badly bruised ribs. I got myself up from the pavement as the cyclist asked if I was okay, but needless to say, the wind had been knocked out of me, so all I could do was respond with a kind of glazed nod. He then said -- get this -- "Next time you really should watch where you're walking," and then sped off. Asshole. My point is, any vehicle can be dangerous -- it's the driver that counts.