L.L. 2007/009

Enactment date: 3/28/2007

Int. No. 24-A

By Council Members Gerson, Brewer, Martinez, Sanders Jr., Mendez, Mealy, Liu, Recchia Jr., Lappin, Gentile, Garodnick, Sears and Weprin

A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to bicycles used for certain commercial purposes.

Be it enacted by the Council as follows:

Section 1. Declaration of legislative findings and intent. The City of New York is replete with businesses that utilize bicycles due to their cost efficiency and high maneuverability. Bicycle riders are frequently seen on the City streets acting as couriers for a wide variety of consumer items.

However, due to the quantity of pedestrian and vehicular traffic within the City, potentially dangerous collisions are inevitable. Approximately 540,000 bicyclists visit emergency rooms each year throughout the United States. Of those, roughly 67,000 have suffered head injuries.

According to the New York City Department of Transportation, head injuries are the most common cause of death among cyclists and wearing a helmet can significantly reduce the risk of head injury. Studies indicate that the use of helmets diminishes the danger of bicycle-related head trauma by 74%-85%. To ensure a minimum level of protection, the Consumer Product Safety Commission has adopted a helmet standard that became mandatory for all helmets manufactured for sale in the U.S. after March, 1999.

The low cost of safety helmets relative to the potentially severe dangers resulting from bicycle accidents clearly demonstrates the benefits of such protective equipment. Additionally, reducing serious head injuries may result in a financial benefit for businesses due to reduced medical and insurance costs. Finally, a reduction in such injuries may help spare the City's health care resources.

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[Consolidated provisions are not included in this Appendix A]

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§ 3. This local law shall take effect one hundred twenty days after it shall have been enacted into law.