BOSTON — A surge in demand for fast food delivery has sprung up small armies of delivery workers — and growing anxiety — in big cities, where scooters, motorcycles and mopeds swerve through traffic and hop onto pedestrian-filled sidewalks as drivers race to deliver salads and sandwiches.
Authorities in Boston, New York and Washington, D.C., have begun cracking down on delivery companies, issuing warning letters, seizing illegally registered or operated vehicles, and instituting extra road patrols to enforce speed limits. The backlash is not limited to the U.S., with a series of crackdowns also taking place in London and other British cities.
Meanwhile, delivery companies have promised to work with city authorities to ensure all drivers operate legally and safely.
In a letter this week to food delivery companies DoorDash, Grubhub and Uber, Boston officials cited an “alarming increase in illegal and dangerous operation of motorcycles, mopeds and e-scooters” that put drivers, other motorists and pedestrians in “imminent danger.”
The letter claimed some drivers were operating unregistered vehicles and violating traffic laws, and warned of an impending crackdown on these vehicles. It also demanded the companies explain how they ensure their drivers are operating safely. Massachusetts State Police said they have identified dozens of mopeds and scooters that are improperly registered or operated by unlicensed drivers. On Wednesday, 14 illegal mopeds and scooters were seized in one Boston neighborhood alone.
New York City officials have seized 13,000 scooters and mopeds so far this year, and busted more than 200 illegal mopeds and other delivery vehicles on Wednesday. Meanwhile, authorities in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday launched a program called “Operation Ride Right” to make sure motorbike drivers are following the law. Since its launch, authorities have arrested five people and seized 17 mopeds.
“They have terrorized many pedestrians, especially seniors,” New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Wednesday at the event where the two-wheeled delivery vehicle was vandalized. “Riders who think the rules don’t apply to them will see the tough enforcement policies being implemented.”
When food delivery services made a big comeback during the COVID-19 pandemic, most drivers used cars to make deliveries, resulting in increased traffic congestion and encouraging a shift to motorbikes and other two-wheeled modes of transportation.
The drivers, many of them immigrants from Latin America, but also West Africa and South Asia, say they are just trying to make a living and provide a quick food delivery service to customers.
“We’re not all bad people,” Luis Lopez, a delivery driver from the Dominican Republic, told The Associated Press on Friday from his motorbike in a fast-food neighborhood near the Boston Public Library. “We’re here to work, to make a living, to pay rent and send something back to our families.”
Lopez, who came to the United States about three years ago, acknowledged that some drivers drive unlicensed and unregistered vehicles and has seen some run red lights, drive onto sidewalks and harm pedestrians. He said some drivers are so reckless they put other delivery drivers at risk.
He said he was among a group of 10 delivery drivers outside a Chick-fil-A on Thursday night when an officer approached them with a flyer explaining how to register their scooters and mopeds, which everyone in the group agreed to do.
“We have to respect the law,” he said in Spanish. “We’re going to respect the law so we can work here.”
Hilary Robinson, an associate professor of law and sociology at Northeastern University, said motorcyclists are facing much more scrutiny than other gig car workers, such as drivers for Uber and Lyft, did a few years ago because they are more likely to violate traffic laws.
The switch to vehicles is “an attempt to preserve low-wage, high-risk labor and ensure we all have access to cheap goods and services,” Robinson said. “This may be one of the reasons people are starting to realize that there really is no such thing as free food.”
William Medina, a New York delivery man and organizing leader with the Los Deliveristas Unidos campaign, blames the delivery companies.
“The problem started with the delivery companies forcing their workers to make deliveries over long distances,” he said in a phone interview Friday. Medina initially delivered food by bicycle, then switched to an e-bike and now uses a moped for longer trips.
“If we have to complete a six- or seven-mile delivery, we have to get it done,” he said.
Among those advocating for tougher policing in Boston is City Councilman Edward Flynn, who said on Facebook that “the city of Boston should no longer be a lawless place.”
“Everyone who uses city roads must obey traffic laws. If you can travel 25 miles per hour like a car, you should be licensed, registered and have liability insurance in case of an accident or injury,” he wrote.
Some Boston residents support stricter measures against scooters.
“It annoys me when they don’t follow the traffic laws,” said Anne Kirby, a 25-year-old student eating lunch on a Boston residential street, a few hundred feet away from several scooters. “I almost get hit every day when they cross the street when it’s not their turn.”
But Jair Samuel, a 25-year-old hospital worker from Boston, was more conflicted: She agreed that delivery scooters are dangerous, but she also acknowledged that she relies heavily on food delivery services.
“Yes, I do think there’s a certain amount of danger in weaving between cars and not stopping at red lights,” she said. “But I think everyone should be able to make a living, so who am I to say anything? It’s unfortunate for me, and I would be hurt by any crackdown on them. I order Uber Eats and DoorDash a lot.”
The three major food delivery services have pledged to work with authorities and neighborhood advocates to address the issue.
“The vast majority of Dashers are doing the right thing and, like any other driver, they must obey traffic laws and will be penalized just like any other driver if they don’t,” DoorDash said in a statement Wednesday.
Grubhub said its employees already agree to abide by local traffic laws. In a statement Thursday, the company said, “While enforcement of the law is best left to police, we take safety seriously and will take steps to address any reports of unsafe driving.”
