New NYC Trade-In Program Approved to Prevent E-Bike Fires

by Mindy Cohn

In a vote on Thursday, the City Council approved the first-of-its-kind New York City-run trade-in program for electric bikes, scooters, and lithium-ion batteries.

The free or low-cost trade-in program for batteries and e-bikes that do not meet fire safety standards was deemed necessary due to the susceptibility of the e-bike batteries to catch fire after 175 lithium-ion battery fires in New York City this year.

The program will cost the City millions over the two years it is expected to remain open. The City will subsidize it, even though the mayor insisted all New York City agencies slash their budgets by 5% due to the budget crisis created by the illegal migrants, as reported by BoroPark24 here. 

The program will offer trades for parts that are not certified by New York City and will be limited to one trade-in per person and coordinated through several City agencies, including the Fire Department.

Another new law for e-bikes is already in place. It began this weekend and bans the sale, lease, or rental of uncertified e-bikes, e-scooters, and batteries but ignores the e-bikes and batteries that have already been purchased privately. The passage of Thursday's new law is expected to pick up the slack in preventing fires by upgrading personal e-bikes and batteries throughout the City. 

The program will also include legislation requiring food delivery apps to ensure their delivery e-bikes are certified and that the batteries are certified as well.