In Other Words, Don't Expect Any Enforcement From HPD To Stop The E-Bike Problem That Is Spiraling Out of Control. Because, Apparently, There is No E-Bike Problem To Begin With!

The next time you see someone in town operating an electric bike or scooter (or two people on a bike meant for one) doing something really stupid, dangerous or illegal (or possibly all of them together) -- including riding too fast, weaving in and out of traffic, blowing through a stop sign or red light, riding on the wrong side of the street, riding the wrong way on a one way street, and especially, riding on a sidewalk -- keep in mind what our Chief of Police had to say at the end of her HPD report at June's informal Common Council meeting.  If you can you make heads or tails about what she was getting at in regard to the issue of e-bikes, your reasoning skills are much better than mine.  

We are familiar with complaints about e-bikes. But it's not e-bikes, it's like the motorbikes where people are kind of trying to say "hey, we have an e-bike," but we also know that if there's no pedals on there, we can write them for an unregistered vehicle, uninspected.  So, we're trying to navigate that because I know there have been a lot of complaints about that to our department and just throughout the community and probably to the council at some point in time." 

Do you feel reassured that HPD will ever get anything done about the e-bike issue? What about issuing tickets for riders breaking traffic laws and riding AN E-BIKE or SCOOTER on a sidewalk that might get a pedestrian knocked to the ground and put in a coma after hitting their head on the concrete?  Is HPD navigating that idea, too?  Or is that not even possible and not even on Mishanda Franklin's radar?  Taking her comments at face value, the answer seems to be, "that's right, HPD is doing nothing about e-bikes.  Possibly "motorbikes," the ones without pedals; but "not e-bikes."  And there is some "navigating" to do before they can act."

Following her twisted, vague and unhelpful comments -- that ultimately had nothing to do with e-bikes -- in response to complaints from the public and at least one council member (Rich Volo) to HPD "about e-bikes," Chief Franklin finished her report with this:

Complaints about parking.  Different thing.  So, we're addressing that on our end as well.  So, if you have any complaints about any particular spot, please send it our way because we're trying to address it as we get there.

Huh?  Wouldn't an example or two of the types of parking complaints HPD has been receiving -- and wants to receive -- have been helpful?  What parking complaints have you received?  What are the issues at hand that you are dealing with or "navigating"?  Alas, not one council member had anything to ask or add to the "conversation."  

This is law enforcement in the year 2025 in Hudson, New York, population less than 6,000.

The new wide sidewalks on all of the west side of Front Street are a dream come true for e-bike and e-scooter riders, especially children.  Regular, old-fashioned bikes, too.  You know, the ones with pedals that go round with the help of human power.