As someone who works in midtown manhattan every day... I suggest that proximity is very important to developing perspective on what is going on with e-bikes around NYC.
1. Of course, it's not the particular aspects of any type of e-bike (throttle, no throttle, etc.). Irrelevant.
2. The number of e-bikes used by delivery people is undergoing exponential growth this year, you can see it when you walk around, which we do here A LOT.
3. As the deployment increases, the visible number of "jerkish" riders goes up accordingly, becoming more visible and creating more incidents.
4. These riders don't think of themselves as cyclists, they're working-Joes delivering something for a demanding customer, a demanding boss, through a crowded concrete jungle of chaos.
5. These are not bicycles, they're ultralight motorcycles that want to be treated on par with bikes. But that's not how they're being ridden around here. They are workhorses that you can park on the sidewalk, easily skirt around traffic and go pretty fast while carrying five different bags of delivery food to 800 Third Ave at 48th street, 12 blocks away. Great vehicle, but not a bicycle.
6. New York set a law about this, like it or not (get out and vote, dammit), and NYC tends to vary enforcement of any law according to needs of safety and crime control.
7. NYC has been very lax on e-bike enforcement (intentionally, I believe) until lately, as the "jerkish" have been creating too many problems. Apparently, the Deli Owner, who dispatches these riders, isn't too worked up about it.
8. What generally happens around here is that something gets problematic, enforcement responds to tone it down, equilibrium returns.
9. And they have to stay off these dense, heavily-populated sidewalks. That's just being stupid.