NYC Considers 15 MPH E-Bike Speed Limit

Written by: Rémy Rossi | July 14, 2025 | Time to read 8 min

A new NYC rule could slow down e-Bikes— but will it really help safety or is it just a political play?

There may be a serious shakeup on the streets of New York City soon, and it revolves around the controversial proposal to limit the speed of electric bikes. Mayor Eric Adams introduced a new rule to lower the speed limit of e-Bikes to 15 mph, but the law isn’t set in stone just quite yet. I attended the online public hearing this morning, and you can comment on the proposed rule until 5 pm. I’ll give you the lowdown on this highly anticipated rule change.

The proposed 15 mph speed limit for e-Bikes is significantly slower than the minimum speed limit for cars in New York City, which is 25 mph. When riding a bike in the street, traveling so slowly compared to car traffic can be dangerous because cars will overtake you on narrow lanes, often not giving you sufficient space.

Riding the same speed as cars can make you more visible to drivers— and traffic safety experts explain that the safest speed between two vehicles is relative zero, or traveling the same speed. Many e-Bikers have to ride on the street since NYC’s bike lane network is incomplete, meaning they are sharing the streets with cars and faster-moving traffic. 

There’s also an important question regarding the actual legality of the proposed rule change. The 15 mph speed limit goes against statewide speed limits for e-Bikes and New York state’s understanding of the different e-Bike classes— no standard e-Bike type has a maximum speed of 15 mph. 

Critics of the rule also called it “half-baked” and impractical in several ways. It would cause the unprecedented situation of different speed limits for different vehicle types on the same road— e-Bikes limited to 15 mph while cars can travel 25 mph. Also, e-Bikers could in theory be ticketed for barely surpassing the speed limit, while drivers typically have a 10 mph margin. 

“Sammy’s Law” was passed last year which ​​allows the city to lower speed limits to 20 mph on individual streets. However, it’s not clear that the local government has the ability to legally limit the speed of e-Bikes to below this threshold, all the way to 15 mph. 

Opponents of the rule change argue a more relevant strategy would be reducing the speed limit for cars, rather than for e-Bikes. A recent poll found that 68% of New York City voters support lowering their neighborhood streets’ speed limit to 20 mph. The most significant threat to pedestrian safety are cars, trucks, and SUVs in the city— not bicycles and e-Bikes. For example, of the 121 pedestrian traffic fatalities in 2024, only one of those pedestrians was struck by an e-Bike. 

Another argument against the slower speed limit is that it will unfairly target and criminalize electric bike users. In April, the mayor and the NYPD started their crackdown on cycling infringements, issuing criminal court summonses for low-level offenses such as going through red lights or riding on the sidewalk— rather than simple citations and fines.

In New York City, many e-Bike riders are immigrant workers, and the criminalization of minor traffic offenses could lead to complications completely unrelated to their traffic infringements. This is a topic that is especially sensitive considering the Trump administration’s increase in ICE raids and hardline immigration policies. 

To get a better understanding about what actual New Yorkers think about the proposed speed limit change, I popped into the public hearing held on July 14th via Zoom. People could talk for three minutes, offering their comments to the NYC Department of Transportation. Those who shared their comments came from all reaches of the city, from attorneys, traffic victims, bicycle advocates, youth, and concerned residents. 

I stuck around for the first hour and a half, recording the tallies for who was for and against the lower speed limit— around 55% were in support and 45% argued against the rule change. This was much closer to a 50/50 split, while the large majority of the online written comments on the rule change were heavily against the slower speed limit.

Here are some of the biggest themes that emerged from the public hearing:

• Priscilla’s Law: Many supporters of the rule change also wanted the city to adopt Priscilla’s Law, or the requirement that e-Bike users have registration and a visible license plate for their bike. This law hasn’t passed yet. Many speakers talked about the need for actual methods to enforce the lower speed limit and other cycling infringements.

• Victims of e-Bike traffic violence: Several people spoke about their personal experiences having been hit by e-Bike riders. Some instances involved the riders breaking other rules— such as going the wrong direction in the bike lane or running a red light— rather than traveling too fast. 

• Questionable legality of the rule change: Opponents of the rule change seriously questioned the actual legality of the move, citing its dissonance with state law and accepted e-Bike definitions. 

• Delivery workers on e-Bikes and the apps: New Yorkers expressed their discontent with the high number of e-Bike deliveristas on the streets. The city should regulate the delivery apps to ensure they aren’t encouraging unsafe rider behavior via impossible delivery times.

• Need for more and better cycling infrastructure: Many people on both sides cited the need for better micro-mobility infrastructure. The debate mainly hinged on whether the lower speed limit was actually a safety-boosting measure or an anti-cyclist policy.