China Moves to Curb Speeding E-Bikes on Sidewalks

Walking along the pavement in a Chinese city is generally a relaxing experience, but there is a caveat: pedestrians must sometimes be cautious of e-bikes that may zoom past from behind.

Forewarned is forearmed: Being prepared can help alleviate potential scares, as these electric vehicles, which are nearly silent, can zip by unexpectedly like apparitions.

The majority of these speeding vehicles are driven by deliverymen, who are constantly worried about missing their delivery on time. The digital platform they work for fines them for customer complaints.

There have been a spate of measures aimed at addressing the plight of these gig workers "trapped in the algorithms."

The Supreme People's Procuratorate said in a work report recently that it had handled 690 public interest litigations to protect gig workers' legal rights. The local Shanghai procurator has urged some digital platforms to stop fining deliverymen for delays or customer complaints.

Fines for delays and deductions over customer complaints hung like the sword of Damocles over countless delivery riders.

These rewards and penalties were often automatically meted out upon receiving a customer complaint, without further verification, and in spite of riders' explanations.

This reduces complex labor relations and consumer complaints to ruthless, inhumane cyber codes, often grandiosely justified as "consumer first."

In one case handled by the Qingpu District People's Procuratorate two years ago, one woman surnamed Peng illicitly garnered over 30,000 yuan (US$4,300) in compensations by deliberately creating a situation where the deliveryman had to sign the receipts themselves after being unable to contact Peng, who simply refused to answer phone calls.

Peng was later prosecuted for extortion.

Last May, after identifying a number of problems in the logistics, the Qingpu procuratorate proposed to the district bureau of Human Resources and Social Security to beef up regulatory effort and guidance with a view to optimizing algorithmic rules.

Ultimately, with the joint efforts, leading digital platforms signed a network-wide algorithm agreement that enables riders, among others, to pocket more for each fulfilled delivery, benefiting more than 1.65 million riders.

Last April, authorities in Putuo District organized a face-to-face discussion between Ele.me, a major online food delivery platform, and delivery rider representatives. The talks focused on algorithmic mechanisms and the rights and interests of couriers.

The two sides eventually signed an agreement under which algorithms would be reoriented to serve workers, including optimizing order allocation and delivery routes, and penalties for late deliveries would be gradually eliminated.

There are other exemplary practices in preventing big tech from abusing algorithms to shift their operational risks and regulatory responsibilities onto frontline workers.

New regulations on promoting the delivery sector in Shandong, adopted since last year, spell out that delivery enterprises shall improve the complaint clarification and exemption mechanism for their employees.

Another circumstance enabling riders to ride ever so fast is the complicity of e-bike rental services whose biggest clients are deliverymen.

In a recent media exposé, it was found that multiple shops under Hello E-bike Rental could evade regulatory oversight by allowing riders to speed at nearly 80 km/h, several times faster than the legally permitted maximum of 25 km/h.

Local regulatory authority in Minhang, where Hello E-bike is headquartered, pledged a crackdown on such practices.

It is hoped that these multiple efforts will make it safer for law-abiding pedestrians to walk on the pavement.