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Electric Citi Bikes recalled after touchy brakes sent riders flying

The front brakes are too strong

Following customer concerns about the safety of its electric bicycles, Citi Bikes has temporarily removed all pedal-assist rides from New York City. Parent company Lyft is also taking similar precautions with its other products and will remove ride-share bicycles in Washington and San Francisco. They will be replaced with traditional bikes.

Spread all throughout NYC, there are rows of Citi Bikes, public bicycles that can be rented for temporary use. Meant to offer an additional form of transportation for the millions of residents, the green alternative is available in two forms: regular pedal bike or a new electric pedal-assist option. The latter has been causing problems since its launch.

According to a report from the New York Times, several people experienced touchy front brakes that caused them to flip over the handlebars when braking hard. This resulted in several injuries, so Citi Bike has pulled approximately 1,000 bikes from its NYC locations. Here is part of the company's official statement:

We recently received a small number of reports from riders who experienced stronger than expected braking force on the front wheel. Out of an abundance of caution, we are proactively removing the pedal-assist bikes from service for the time being. We know this is disappointing to the many people who love the current experience — but reliability and safety come first.

The NYT also stated that Lyft, which recently purchased bike-share conglomerate Motivate, has pulled electric bicycles from Capital Bikeshare in Washington and Ford GoBike in San Francisco.

While Citi Bike investigates the issue, it is also working on the next-gen electric pedal-assist bike, which is said to be coming soon. Citi Bike says the new model will be accessible by scanning a QR code and "overall will be more fun to ride."

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