S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
1416
2009-2010 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
(PREFILED)
January 7, 2009
___________
Introduced by M. of A. WRIGHT -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Cities
AN ACT to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in
relation to the regulation of commercial bicyclists
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Section 10-157 of the administrative code of the city of
New York, subdivisions e and f as added by and subdivisions g and h as
amended by local law number 9 of the city of New York for the year 2007,
is amended to read as follows:
S 10-157 Bicycles used for commercial purposes. a. Every person, firm,
partnership, joint venture, association or corporation which engages in
the course of its business, either on behalf of itself or others, in
delivering packages, parcels, papers or articles of any type by bicycle
SHALL REGISTER EACH BICYCLE WITH THE LOCAL POLICE PRECINCT AND shall
provide identification of the business by requiring every bicycle or
bicycle operator to be identified by:
(1) affixing to the rear of each bicycle[, bicycle seat or both sides
of the delivery basket,] a metal, plastic, or other sign of a type
approved by the police commissioner, with the name of the business and a
three digit identification number which identifies the bicycle operator
in lettering and numerals so as to be plainly readable at a distance of
not less than ten feet and maintaining same in good condition thereon;
and
(2) by requiring each bicycle operator to wear a jacket, vest, or
other wearing apparel on the upper part of the cyclist's body while
making deliveries, or otherwise riding a bicycle on behalf of the busi-
ness, the back of which shall indicate the business name and the bicycle
operator's individual identification number in lettering and numerals so
as to be plainly readable at a distance of not less than ten feet.
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00219-01-9
A. 1416 2
A-1. EVERY BICYCLE OPERATOR, WHILE ENGAGED IN BICYCLE OPERATION, SHALL
WEAR A HELMET MEETING THE STANDARDS OF THE AMERICAN NATIONAL STANDARDS
INSTITUTE (ANSI Z 90.4 BICYCLE HELMET STANDARDS) OR THE SNELL MEMORIAL
FOUNDATION'S STANDARDS FOR PROTECTIVE HEADGEAR FOR USE IN BICYCLING. FOR
THE PURPOSES OF THIS SUBDIVISION, WEARING A HELMET MEANS HAVING A HELMET
OF GOOD FIT FASTENED SECURELY UPON THE HEAD WITH THE HELMET STRAPS.
b. Every person, firm, partnership, joint venture, association or
corporation engaged in providing a service as authorized herein must
issue to every bicycle operator a numbered identification card which
contains the name, residence address and photo of the bicycle operator
and the name, address and telephone number of the company for whom the
bicycle operator is employed. Such identification card must be carried
by the bicycle operator while the cyclist is making deliveries, or
otherwise riding a bicycle on behalf of the business, and must be
produced upon the demand of a police officer or any other law enforce-
ment officer.
c. Every person, firm, partnership, joint venture, association or
corporation engaged in providing a service as authorized herein shall
maintain in a log book to be kept for such purpose, the name and place
of residence address of every employee operating a bicycle, the date of
employment and discharge of each person in said service, and every
messenger or delivery person's identification number. The owner of any
business engaged in providing a service as authorized in this section
shall be responsible for maintaining in the log book a daily trip record
in which all entries shall be made legibly in ink and each entry shall
be dated and include the bicycle identification number, the operator's
name and the name and place of origin and destination for each trip. No
entry shall be rewritten either in whole or in part except in such
manner as may be provided by regulation of the commissioner; any such
unauthorized rewriting shall give rise to a rebuttable presumption of an
act of fraud, deceit or misrepresentation. Such log book shall be made
available for inspection during regular and usual business hours upon
request of an agent of the police commissioner or any police officer or
any other person authorized by law.
d. The owner of any business engaged in providing a service as author-
ized in this section shall file an annual report in such form as shall
be designated by the police commissioner by rule or regulations. Said
report shall include, inter alia, the number of bicycles it owns and the
number and identity of any employees it may retain. Any business engaged
in providing a service as authorized in this section shall be responsi-
ble for the compliance with the provisions of this section of any
employees it shall retain. Nothing contained in this section shall be
construed as applying to persons under the age of sixteen who use a
bicycle to deliver daily newspapers or circulars.
e. (1) The owner of any business engaged in providing a service as
authorized in this section shall provide, at its own expense, protective
headgear suitable for each bicycle operator. Such headgear shall:
(i) meet the standards set forth by the consumer product safety
commission in title 16, part 1203 of the code of federal regulations;
(ii) be readily available at each employment site for use by each
bicycle operator; and
(iii) be replaced if such headgear is no longer in good condition.
Headgear is no longer in good condition if it is missing any of its
component parts or is otherwise damaged so as to impair its functionali-
ty.
A. 1416 3
(2) Each bicycle operator shall wear protective headgear that meets
the requirements of paragraph 1 of this subdivision while making deliv-
eries or otherwise operating a bicycle on behalf of such business. The
term "wear such protective headgear" means having the headgear fastened
securely upon the head with the headgear straps.
f. The owner of any business engaged in providing a service as author-
ized in this section, notwithstanding that a bicycle may be provided by
an employee thereof, shall provide at its own expense and ensure that
each bicycle is equipped with a lamp; a bell or other device capable of
giving an audible signal; brakes; reflective tires or, alternately, a
reflex reflector mounted on the spokes of each wheel; as well as other
reflective devices or material, in accordance with section 1236 of the
vehicle and traffic law.
g. Except as otherwise provided in subdivision h of this section, the
violation of any of the provisions of this section, or of any of the
rules or regulations that may be promulgated pursuant hereto, shall be a
violation triable by a judge of the criminal court of the city of New
York and upon conviction thereof shall be punishable by a fine of not
less than one hundred dollars nor more than two hundred and fifty
dollars or imprisonment for not more than fifteen days or both such fine
and imprisonment.
h. Any person who makes deliveries or otherwise operates a bicycle on
behalf of a business without carrying the identification required by
subdivision b of this section or who fails to produce such identifica-
tion upon demand as required by such subdivision, or who fails to wear
protective headgear required by subdivision e of this section, shall be
guilty of a traffic infraction and upon conviction thereof shall be
liable for a fine of not less than twenty-five dollars nor more than
fifty dollars. It shall be an affirmative defense to such traffic
infraction that the business did not provide the protective headgear
required by subdivision e of this section. Such traffic infraction may
be adjudicated by such an administrative tribunal as is authorized under
article two-A of the vehicle and traffic law.
S 2. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed-
ing the date on which it shall have become a law.