Cycling can be a fantastic way to exercise, sight-see, or burn calories. But for many food delivery drivers and other gig workers, biking is also a practical requirement for their job—one they’d like some help with. That remains a problem in New York City, however, where people who use electric scooters and some electric bikes are subject to a $500 fine and confiscations. While the popularity of e-scooters and e-bikes is exploding in cities across the United States and spreading rapidly in Europe, the Empire State seems woefully behind the times.
骑单车是锻炼、观光、燃烧卡路里的绝妙方式。但是对很多外卖配送员和其他打临时工的人来说，单车也是工作的实用要求--他们的工作需要单车的帮助。然而这在纽约还是个问题。人们在纽约骑电动车和其他的电动单车面临500美元的罚款和没收单车的处罚。虽然电动车和电动单车在美国各市都大受欢迎，并迅速扩散到欧洲，但“帝国”似乎严重与时代脱节了。
The state legislature tried to change all that in June, when overwhelming majorities in both the Assembly and Senate approved a bill that would have granted cities the right to make their own rules for both modes of transportation. But on December 26, Governor Andrew Cuomo vetoed the bill, arguing that it didn’t contain enough safety measures, such as a requirement that riders wear helmets.
美国立法机关在六月份试图改变这一点，那时众议院和参议院中的绝大多数人都赞同一项法案，批准城市自己制定两种交通模式的规则。但是在12月26日，安德鲁·科摩(Andrew Cuomo)州长否决了这一法案，称此项法案未包含足够的安全措施，例如没有要求骑行者佩戴头盔。
That means a fragmented policy on electric vehicles in New York City. In 2018, the government approved the use of bikes that provide an electric assist while you pedal (like those provided by Uber subsidiary Jump). But throttle-controlled e-bikes, and all electric scooters, are banned under state law.
这意味着纽约关于电动车辆的措施四分五裂。2018年，政府批准了踩踏板时提供电动协助的车辆的使用(比如Uber的Jump单车)。但是刹车控制的电动单车以及所有的电动车被州法律禁止。
The measure to legalize e-scooters and e-bikes had broad support from activists, such as the 100,000-member New York City organization Transit Alternatives, and companies that provide e-vehicles, such as Bird and Lime. Responding to the veto, Transit Alternatives issued a statement that read, in part, “Governor Cuomo, a supposed champion for immigrants and the working poor, has failed to protect 40,000 low-wage, mostly immigrant workers in New York.”
使电动车和电动单车合法化的措施得到了活动家以及提供电动车辆的公司的广泛支持，比如拥有10万名会员的纽约组织Transit Alternatives(交通运输替代)、Bird公司、Lime公司。Transit Alternative作为对否决的回应，发布了一份声明，部分声明如下：“科摩州长，所谓的移民和穷苦工人的捍卫者，无法保护4万名纽约的低薪工人，其中大多数是移民。”
The bill had more than enough support for a vote to override the veto, if the legislature were still in session. Instead, the fight will have to be revived next year—something that Cuomo says he welcomes. “There is no need for us to choose between legalizing e-bikes and safety, and I will propose a bill that does both on January 8,” the governor tweeted on Thursday evening.
如果立法机关还处在会期的话，这项法案得到的支持足够推翻那份否决。但是这场斗争得明年(2020年)才能重启，科摩说自己很欢迎这件事。“我们无需在让电动单车合法化和安全之间抉择，我将在1月8号提出两全其美的法案。”这位州长在周四晚发推文说。
