Will Electric Bikes Overtake Standard Bike Sales?
11-09-18, 01:12 PM
#101
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1. mandatory operators license
2. mandatory proof of financial responsibility for incurred damages (insurance)
3. mandatory registration of vehicle to centralized database (license plate)
E-bikes currently require none of this. And that will change when there are enough accidents and injuries involving them.
11-09-18, 01:31 PM
#102
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My point is I believe that relatively few people in North America will replace their currently owned 4 wheel motorized vehicle with a bicycle or e-bike. There may be a larger number, size unknown, that might in the future decide to use an ebike, as you have, as a substitute for their 4 wheel motor vehicle for some short local trips and errands, especially in daylight good weather. More likely, people will use ebikes as a substitute for public transportation, also especially, and probably only in good weather.
Last edited by I-Like-To-Bike; 11-09-18 at 01:38 PM.
11-09-18, 01:43 PM
#103
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My point is I believe that relatively few people in North America will replace their currently owned 4 wheel motorized vehicle with a bicycle or e-bike. There may be a larger number, size unknown, that might in the future decide to use an ebike, as you have, as a substitute for their 4 wheel motor vehicle for some short local trips and errands, especially in daylight good weather. More likely, people will use ebikes as a substitute for public transportation, also especially, and probably only in good weather.
11-09-18, 01:48 PM
#104
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+1
I'm with you there.
Apart from the DIY monstrosities I see on the streets on a weekly basis, I have a couple of colleagues contemplating off-the-charts-illegal builds in the 2-3kW/50 mph range that they plan to ride among cyclists.
And I cringe when I see what they are planning to base their builds on, basically whatever they can drag out from under the patio, back of the garden shed etc.
1" steerers, stamped-metal caliper brakes. "Suspension" forks whose usefulness actually inceased when they rusted solid.
Any attempt at ever so delicately raise any concerns about their plans is met with a complete lack of understanding and the comment: "relax, it's only electric" - as if impact energy would care about what energy it was that made things move.
I'm with you there.
Apart from the DIY monstrosities I see on the streets on a weekly basis, I have a couple of colleagues contemplating off-the-charts-illegal builds in the 2-3kW/50 mph range that they plan to ride among cyclists.
And I cringe when I see what they are planning to base their builds on, basically whatever they can drag out from under the patio, back of the garden shed etc.
1" steerers, stamped-metal caliper brakes. "Suspension" forks whose usefulness actually inceased when they rusted solid.
Any attempt at ever so delicately raise any concerns about their plans is met with a complete lack of understanding and the comment: "relax, it's only electric" - as if impact energy would care about what energy it was that made things move.
And of course you are seeing such ebikes out on the road weekly
11-09-18, 03:23 PM
#105
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There are some stuck-up bigots on here. I've quickly learnt to work around them, they won't change.
What someone interprets as a bicycle or not does not matter. The law matters. Most E-bikes are legally in the same category and status, as a bicycle. The bikes are specifically engineered to fit the legal criteria.
That is all.
What someone interprets as a bicycle or not does not matter. The law matters. Most E-bikes are legally in the same category and status, as a bicycle. The bikes are specifically engineered to fit the legal criteria.
That is all.
Yes, but laws can be wrong, and laws can be changed. The trend I'm concerned with is that the powered bikes are getting bigger and heavier, so putting them in the same category as bicycles is getting more and more problematic.
And you should probably be told that stating "x is the law" to a mostly American readership is perhaps not the best idea because there are 50+ very different jurisdictions over here with laws that differ significantly, and that doesn't even include the thousands of localities with their own ordinances. I'm pretty comfortable assuming you haven't systematically gone through all of those before telling us what the law is.
11-09-18, 05:15 PM
#106
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This article was in the local news today: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toront...2018-1.4897300
11-09-18, 05:51 PM
#107
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Very cool. I'm a believer, crossing my fingers and hope that it sticks.
GM plans to introduce its first e-bikes next year...
Maybe they can capitalize on the value of the successful GMC Denali brand of bikes.
GM plans to introduce its first e-bikes next year...
Maybe they can capitalize on the value of the successful GMC Denali brand of bikes.
11-09-18, 05:56 PM
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Here's an idea. Have e-biking be a stage of the Tour de France. How it works is, each rider is given an identical battery, fully charged. They have to figure out the best strategy for using the available energy in the battery, along with providing their own muscle power if they want, to reach the finish.
11-09-18, 06:34 PM
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Here's an idea. Have e-biking be a stage of the Tour de France. How it works is, each rider is given an identical battery, fully charged. They have to figure out the best strategy for using the available energy in the battery, along with providing their own muscle power if they want, to reach the finish.
I mean, I think driving assist and stability and emission features are excellent for street cars, I don't really think TCS and catalytic converters belong in NASCAR.
11-09-18, 07:07 PM
#110
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Is it really that hard for people to grasp that there is a WIDE variety of uses for bikes, from strictly utilitarian to strictly competitive, and that just because eassist makes a lot of sense for some doesn't mean they have to exist on them all?
I mean, I think driving assist and stability and emission features are excellent for street cars, I don't really think TCS and catalytic converters belong in NASCAR.
I mean, I think driving assist and stability and emission features are excellent for street cars, I don't really think TCS and catalytic converters belong in NASCAR.
11-09-18, 07:13 PM
#111
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No, I ride a bike for exercise if I want something motorized I'm buying a Ducati or BMW, will say when living in Europe it was easier for me to get around the city on the bike than the car.
11-09-18, 07:27 PM
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The thing is, those two don't coexist in the same environment. The difference clearly distinguished each one and relocate them their respective proper environments. Assist bike will encroach onto non assist bike's territory and may eventually dominate it. That's my only concern.
11-09-18, 07:29 PM
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Here's an idea. Have e-biking be a stage of the Tour de France. How it works is, each rider is given an identical battery, fully charged. They have to figure out the best strategy for using the available energy in the battery, along with providing their own muscle power if they want, to reach the finish.
.... nope, I got nothing.
11-09-18, 08:27 PM
#115
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This article was in the local news today: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toront...2018-1.4897300
11-09-18, 09:01 PM
#116
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I ride for the exercise .
That said, if I could ride farther , faster & still get a good workout, There’s possibly an ebike in my future .
If auto companies get into them, more & more
improvements to come.
I’ll let them evolve a few more years,
get lighter & longer range. Some new models
see how they get regulated &
how the Feds,
States & cities embrace them on MUPs/ in Parks/
& other Non-motorized restricted
areas(They are “Clean Air” compliant)
That said, if I could ride farther , faster & still get a good workout, There’s possibly an ebike in my future .
If auto companies get into them, more & more
improvements to come.
I’ll let them evolve a few more years,
get lighter & longer range. Some new models
see how they get regulated &
how the Feds,
States & cities embrace them on MUPs/ in Parks/
& other Non-motorized restricted
areas(They are “Clean Air” compliant)
11-10-18, 12:01 PM
#117
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Hi all....
It's been me than 14 years I never rode a bicycle because I had a gasoline bike here in India but the introduction of ecycles made me an interest to look into it both for economical purpose and also for health Since gasoline is getting costlier here because of government's policies here , I thought I could save some money by using ebike occasionally.
If it was not ebike, I don't think I would ride a bicycle again because of being adapted to high speed gasoline bikes
It's been me than 14 years I never rode a bicycle because I had a gasoline bike here in India but the introduction of ecycles made me an interest to look into it both for economical purpose and also for health Since gasoline is getting costlier here because of government's policies here , I thought I could save some money by using ebike occasionally.
If it was not ebike, I don't think I would ride a bicycle again because of being adapted to high speed gasoline bikes
11-10-18, 01:39 PM
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11-10-18, 02:02 PM
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We say "eBikes" but there are really two classes that behave and look quite different from each other.
Class 1: pedal only with assist up to 20 mph. I have two of these, the Vanmoof and the Faraday, both quite similar to each other. While they do weigh 40 or so pounds, they handle much better than regular 20 pound bicycles because they aren't devoted to being ultra-light.
Class 3: pedal and throttle up to 30 mph (easily). I have one of these, with the motor attached to the crank, and honestly I think these are basically motorcycles with pedals. While mine can be turned into a Class 1 with on-the-go settings, I think they are somewhat inappropriate for bicycle paths as the temptation to speed on them is overwhelming.
Class 1: pedal only with assist up to 20 mph. I have two of these, the Vanmoof and the Faraday, both quite similar to each other. While they do weigh 40 or so pounds, they handle much better than regular 20 pound bicycles because they aren't devoted to being ultra-light.
Class 3: pedal and throttle up to 30 mph (easily). I have one of these, with the motor attached to the crank, and honestly I think these are basically motorcycles with pedals. While mine can be turned into a Class 1 with on-the-go settings, I think they are somewhat inappropriate for bicycle paths as the temptation to speed on them is overwhelming.
Bikes with dyno-hubs for lighting will be called Class -1 e-bikes.
11-10-18, 02:10 PM
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11-10-18, 04:44 PM
#123
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e-bikes have nothing whatsoever to do with cycling, notwithstanding all the special pleading that goes on here on bike forums. E-bikes are just another form of motorized transportation.
^this^
people who are avid cyclists are not going to switch as long as they are healthy. The ebikes appeal to a different market: The infirm and wanna-be cyclists/commuters who want out of their cars and traffic but are too lazy/lack the desire to put in the effort of real cycling.
^this^
people who are avid cyclists are not going to switch as long as they are healthy. The ebikes appeal to a different market: The infirm and wanna-be cyclists/commuters who want out of their cars and traffic but are too lazy/lack the desire to put in the effort of real cycling.
11-10-18, 06:31 PM
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11-12-18, 12:28 PM
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E-bikes have nothing whatsoever to do with cycling, notwithstanding all the special pleading that goes on here on Bike Forums. E-bikes are just another form of motorized transportation.
^This^
People who are avid cyclists are not going to switch as long as they are healthy. The ebikes appeal to a different market: the infirm and wanna-be cyclists/commuters who want out of their cars and traffic but are too lazy/lack the desire to put in the effort of real cycling.
^This^
People who are avid cyclists are not going to switch as long as they are healthy. The ebikes appeal to a different market: the infirm and wanna-be cyclists/commuters who want out of their cars and traffic but are too lazy/lack the desire to put in the effort of real cycling.
Some people are so ignorant about different choices that they make ridiculous generalizations about people being lazy or not avid cyclists. I am not in-firmed. I play pickelball many days a week.