E-Biker Bashes British Tourist on Upper East Side

A couple from Britain were heading toward a restaurant on the Upper East Side, just steps from the Fairfax apartment building, when one of them was sucker-punched by a maniac on a motorized bike, according to a video posted on an Upper East Side blog.

The victim said his name is Thomas and he lives just outside of London, and he told Our Town that he does not think he will be visiting New York City again anytime soon:

“We are leaving [March 2]. I don’t think I will be back anytime soon. This place is outrageous. I am concerned for my safety.”

A witness to the incident said a motorbike rider was running a red light on Third Avenue and East 69th Street and bearing down on the couple, who were crossing with a walk sign. When Thomas held out his folded umbrella to prevent the biker from running into the couple, that apparently enraged the biker.

A video of the attack posted on r/uppereastside on the day of the incident, on Feb. 28, by u/mulmer96 said this of his friends: “They had the pedestrian light to cross the street, and this guy was speeding at them, about to hit them. My friend put his unopened umbrella out as a way to stop him and put distance between them. He said the guy’s bike came to a halt and the umbrella barely grazed him.”

But that was apparently enough to send the biker into a frenzy.

”They continued walking and [the biker] rode up on the sidewalk and started shouting profanities at them and said, ‘What would you do if I hit you?’ “

Then the biker punched Thomas in the face, the posted video showed. After throwing the sucker punch, the video showed the biker making his getaway, riding the wrong way down the one-way E. 69th St.

”Thankfully, [Thomas’s] glasses did not break, but he has a nasty gash on the side of his nose from the glasses hitting into him from the punch,” said the poster.

The incident comes as a controversial e-bike “speedway” was recently opened up by the Department of Transportation (DOT) along a two-mile stretch of Third Avenue, after the DOT rejiggered traffic lights to coincide with the average speed of an e-bike of 15 mph. Previously the traffic lights were made to coincide with the speed limit for cars, 25 mph.

The change has apparently worried pedestrians who fear the unimpeded throughfare will increase the potential for bike-versus-pedestrian crashes, while drivers along Third Avenue have complained that the traffic lights have now forced vehicular traffic to a crawl. UES Council member Julie Menin has complained to DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez that the community was not given any advance notice before the e-bike speedway, stretching from East 60th Street to East 96th Street, a distance of over two miles, was unveiled.

The note about the biker’s punching the tourist was posted on the Reddit site, and it elicited complaints about motorized bikes, sympathy for the British tourists and reports of more clashes between motorized bikes and pedestrians on the UES.

”Sucker-punches and run for it,” posted Smart_Freedom_8155. “What a gem of a human being. Glad your friend is mostly OK.”

”Those bikes have gotten dangerous to pedestrians in Manhattan. It wasn’t so bad before 2021,” posted xyz_abc_789_123. “But now when I’m in the city I get close calls all the time.”

”This is why we need e-bike regulations in NYC,” wrote another of the Reddit posters.

“I don’t understand why they are allowed to drive on the sidewalk. You don’t see Citibike riders on the sidewalk. It’s so dangerous! They are basically a car on a sidewalk since all of them are electric and go extremely fast,” added Foreign_tourist3982.

Added another poster, identified as indigomild: “My sister got hit by an ebike going full speed on the sidewalk yesterday.” He said the biker on the sidewalk fell off the bike after he knocked down his sister. He said his sister is OK, but banged up on arm, neck, and. shoulders.

Some were calling for more enforcement of existing laws. “There’s already laws against riding on the sidewalks, going through red lights, speeding in bike lanes, etc. But they’re not enforced.”

He added car drivers also ignore traffic laws. “Same things for cars blowing through red lights, which happens at every single intersection on First and Second Avenue on the UES during the day. Every single one, every day.”

The British couple made their way to the restaurant, Donna Margherita, at 1304 Second Ave. between 68th and 69th streets after the attack. “The nice staff gave him ice for his nose and he’s doing fine, but just wanted to share the story for awareness,” said their friend.

But asked by other Reddit users on the site if they had reported the incident to the police, the friend said they had not. “They’re just in town for a visit and there wasn’t a [license] plate on the bike.” And he added, “I think they’re aware reporting it wouldn’t go anywhere.”

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