Revel, a moped-sharing transportation service, suspended operations in New York City on Tuesday, hours after the second fatal accident involving one of the company’s scooters on city streets.
“New York Passengers: Starting today, the New York service will be closed until further notice. We are reviewing and strengthening our passenger accountability and safety measures and communicating with city officials, and we look forward to serving you again. in the near future”. said a tweet from Revel.
A Revel spokesman said the suspension was voluntary, but declined to comment further. The spokesperson said the suspension of service only affected New York City, and not Revel from the other city operating in: Washington; Miami; Austin, Texas; and Oakland, California.
The announcement came less than eight hours after a 32-year-old Brooklyn man died after crashing the Revel he was riding on a light pole in Queens, according to the New York City Police Department. The man, identified as Jeremy Malave, suffered severe head trauma and was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
Tuesday’s death follows the death of 26-year-old CBS New York reporter Nina Kapur, who was riding on the back of a Revel moped driven by a man when he strayed and crashed on a Brooklyn street in early this month. Kapur died at Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan, and the man suffered minor injuries.
A Revel spokesman said at the time that the company was investigating the incident and assisting with an investigation by the New York police “in any way we can.”
Revel mopeds debuted in New York City in the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, and are a more recent addition to the streets of Manhattan.
Anyone over the age of 21 with a valid license can use one simply by downloading an app and unlocking a Revel scooter from a designated service area.
The mopeds come with two helmets. They go up to 30 mph and are not allowed on sidewalks, highways, or bridges. Travel from Brooklyn or Queens to Manhattan or vice versa is prohibited.
Revel had suspended 1,000 riders for breaking driving rules before Kapur’s death and another 1,000 afterward in an effort to strengthen security measures.
Other Revel-related injuries have been reported in New York City, but it is unclear exactly how many people were injured in accidents involving the scooters. New York police did not immediately have that information to share with NBC News.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio tweeted Tuesday that “transportation alternatives are important, but safety on our streets is paramount. We spoke with Revel this morning and they are closing until we can find a way to make mopeds shared be safe. “
During a subsequent press conference, he said the suspension was “the right thing to do, because no one should run an unsafe business. And, unfortunately, this has been shown to be unsafe.”
“They can’t open up in this city unless they find a way to make the service safe,” de Blasio said. “And if they don’t come back with their way of making the service safe, we won’t allow them to reopen.”
