In case you’ve been following the information on electrical bicycle fires within the US, you’ll already know that New York Metropolis is extensively seen because the epicenter, usually catching headlines for battery fires. The town hosts extra electrical scooters and e-bikes than ever earlier than, and but this yr is seeing a drastic drop in fatalities attributable to battery fires.
So if there are extra battery-powered mobility gadgets on NYC’s streets than ever earlier than, why are the fireplace dying figures heading in the other way?
To start with, as we’ve usually reported right here on Electrek, the phenomenon of an electrical bicycle hearth, and particularly fatalities from electrical bicycle fires, are exceeding uncommon. They get loads of information protection due to the outdated “if it bleeds (or burns), it leads” adage. However the truth of the matter is that there are hundreds of thousands of e-bikes and e-scooters at present rolling across the US and battery fires are extremely uncommon.
Even in New York Metropolis, which is house to extra of those gadgets than anyplace else within the US, town noticed simply 14 fatalities from dozens of e-bike fires in 2023. That isn’t to say the issue isn’t critical however quite to place issues in perspective. New Yorkers are 3-5x extra prone to die from choking or driving the subway than from a battery hearth.
Regardless of that already low price, 2024 has seen a significant drop in e-bike hearth fatalities. As of final month, simply 4 deaths have been recorded in battery fires, marking greater than a 60% drop in comparison with 2023, in line with the New York Instances.
The most important contributing issue to e-bike battery fires is the prevalence of low-quality batteries produced by ultra-budget producers. These batteries may be engaging to shoppers as a consequence of their considerably decrease costs. Such low-cost batteries are generally utilized by supply riders and different low-income staff who depend on their e-bikes for a dwelling, however they arrive with security considerations as a consequence of unscrupulous manufacturing strategies.
New York Metropolis, for its half, has made a significant effort to maintain these batteries out, implementing a ban on mobility gadgets offered with batteries that aren’t UL-compliant. Because the ban started, metropolis inspectors have visited a whole lot of e-bike shops and battery restore outlets, serving to to implement the ban on non-conforming batteries.
Whereas this hasn’t fully stemmed the tide of poorly-made batteries, it has actually helped cut back their availability and the variety of cheaply made e-bike batteries out on the road.
NYC has additionally undertaken main instructional applications which have inspired metropolis residents to cost their batteries safely, which means both open air or in fire-protected areas comparable to specifically designed charging packing containers, as an alternative of in the lounge of their residences.
The town has partnered with a number of third-party battery cupboard corporations that supply safe locking storage for battery charging and swapping. This allows supply riders and others to securely and rapidly cost their batteries or swap them out for brand new ones.
Such outside charging services have gotten considerably extra widespread, however are nonetheless uncommon in the US. Corporations like Beam have debuted solar-powered charging stations for e-bikes, however the requirement to carry their very own wall charger has been a standard criticism of such designs.
Different corporations, comparable to Mod Bikes, have debuted e-bike charging stations that present locking storage for the e-bike chargers.
The number of completely different safe charging areas, the crackdown on poorly-made batteries, and the funding in training and public consciousness round e-bike fires have probably helped NYC make such a significant discount in e-bike hearth fatalities in simply the previous yr.
