Urbanism
Pedal protests
In New York the bicycle lane has become the fast lane. Souped-up electric bikes have been racing up and down city streets at more than 30km/h for years but now mayor Bill de Blasio has put the brakes on. He is planning a crackdown to target businesses that use e-bikes to deliver goods around the five boroughs. By going after them with aggressive fines, De Blasio hopes to convince them to abandon their e-bikes that, thanks to a loophole, are legal to own but not use in New York. In recent years complaints of zooming electronic bicycles have spiked; it remains to be seen whether a new ticketing scheme can slow them down.