Jeremy Malave, 32, was riding a Revel moped on Woodhaven Boulevard in Queens early Tuesday morning when he struck a light pole on a median, according to New York police.
Officers said they found Malave lying on the road with a severe head trauma. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said Tuesday morning that recent injuries and deaths on Revel scooters were “an unacceptable state of affairs.” The city will not allow Revel to reopen unless it can do so safely, he added.
Revel had expanded its service in New York this year and been popular with people seeking alternatives to public transportation during the pandemic. Revel’s mopeds are also available in Washington DC, Miami, Austin and Oakland. It plans to launch in San Francisco next month. A Revel spokeswoman said that service is unaffected in Revel’s other markets, and declined to comment further on the suspension.
Revel offers two helmets that riders are supposed to use. Malave was wearing a helmet but Kapur was not, according to New York poilce. New riders are required to say that they’ve watched a 3-minute-18-second how-to video from Revel. Revel has periodically offered in-person training classes in markets, but they aren’t required to use the mopeds.
Many Revel riders have been criticized for bad etiquette and rule-breaking. Revel emailed its New York riders this summer and said it had suspended 1,000 riders in New York City for violating its rules.
CNN’s Kristina Sgueglia contributed to this report.