Friday’s Headlines: ‘Unsafe’ At Any Scoot Edition

E-scooter share is coming to eastern Queens — and with it “local” “safety concerns,” amplified on Thursday in the venerated pages of WNYC/Gothamist.

A similar program has thrived in the Bronx for nearly three years — with 3.8 million trips, tens of thousands of riders and few, if any, injuries.

Council Member Sandra Ung (D-Flushing) apparently didn’t get the memo. Ung issued a letter to the Department of Transportation last year denouncing the program’s arrival to Flushing as a “nuisance” and “issue of public safety.” The Council member and allies rallied Thursday against the plan.

“We all have objected to this and yet they’re still going to bring the program here,” Ung told Gothamist, which eagerly amplified her fact-free position with the headline, “‘It’s really an issue of public safety’: Queens officials plan to denounce e-scooter program.”

Downtown Flushing is one of the densest parts of the city still without Citi Bike. Naturally, the arrival of shared scooters will be a boon for locals and visitors alike. The city’s rules require e-scooter users park their vehicles in designated “scooter corrals” — contradicting Ung’s claims that they will be a “nuisance” in the pedestrian-heavy neighborhood.

“We’ve overseen millions of scooter-sharing rides in the Bronx, helping better connect residents to mass transit and commercial corridors, without a single serious safety incident and a good record on parking compliance,” DOT spokesman Vin Barone said in a statement to Gothamist.

In other news:

• A for-hire vehicle driver killed 34-year-old pedestrian John Horan in Midtown on Wednesday, police said. (Gothamist)
• Industry that benefits from less traffic files another suit against congestion pricing. (NY Times, CBS New York, amNY, NY Post)
• The MTA is hosting “webinars” ahead of the June 30 launch of congestion pricing. (NY1)
• … and the Daily News editorial board is stoked.
• City Hall seeks to cut pollution from “last-mile” delivery warehouses. (Gothamist)
• Greenpointers hold town hall ahead of G train shutdown. (Gothamist)
• City Council pushes DOT and Parks for more public restrooms. (NY Post)
• “If someone’s using this device they should lose their license”: Bob Holden sounds the alarm about “smart glass” license plate covers scofflaw drivers can turn on and off with a button: