Elizabeth Chow testifies on personal accountability and parks

Good afternoon, my name is Elizabeth Chow.

It is beyond time that our government addresses the safety and quality of life crisis that's been unleashed on pedestrians and cyclists by the reckless driving of electric motorbikes and scooters.

I thank Speaker Menon and this Council for convening this hearing, but unfortunately the bills under consideration today will do little for the safety of New Yorkers because none of them addresses the critical issue of personal accountability.

By all means, keep illegal vehicles off our streets.

By all means, make delivery apps prioritize safety over profits.

But you must also pass Priscilla's Law, Intro 802, to require the registration, licensing, and insurance of all electric motor vehicles.

Without the accountability created by Priscilla's Law, all the other bills will be meaningless because enforcement will be impossible.

Reckless driving of electric motor vehicles doesn't just happen on our streets and sidewalks, it also happens in our parks.

These spaces are meant for recreation, not transportation.

The Central Park Conservancy, the DOT, the Parks Department, and all this government, instead of protecting these sanctuaries, have turned them into transportation superhighways

for commuters and delivery drivers who use them to get somewhere else, not for their intended purpose.

These vehicles bring the chaos and danger of our streets right into the only places we can go to escape them.

And just like on our streets, there is zero enforcement.

must pass Intro 377 banning electric motor vehicles from our parks.

Thank you.