What do you think about e-bikes?

Anything that gets people active, outside, and using less fuel is a helpful thing. I know many people who ride ebikes who wouldn't otherwise, including a co-worker of mine who is elderly, one with significant leg and back disability, a neighbor who had a DUI, people who are not fit enough to climb hills at home, etc. The list is endless. I've ridden ebikes, and it can be just as much of a work out. You can actually get more of a workout if you can set the bike into "regen" mode. This adds charge to the battery and increases the resistance so you can feel like you are going up a steep hill while on a flat. The more people out there on bikes, the better! Until an ebike doesn’t have the ability to go slower, I see no reason why it should be considered legally any different from a traditional bike (except in competitions, obviously).

HOWEVER…

Often times people who use ebikes are not as experienced as “traditional cyclists” and are not aware of the hazards they pose. The number of ebike users on my daily commute has skyrocketed in the past 2 years. I’ve had several near misses with ebike users due to the same hazards. Ebikes are SILENT. Traditionally, I can hear people panting, the chain, squeaks, and whatnot. It’s usually obvious when someone is biking behind me, especially if they are huffing and puffing to pass. An ebike makes NO NOISE. Also, they are going FAST. They zip past me at 20mph up a hill while the rest of us are going around 10. I would not be able to react from a cyclist at this speed. Because many are not used to biking, they will pass on the right (NEVER do this), they pass without calling out and without signaling, and many pass VERY CLOSE. Like, touch your shoulder close. If I were to turn my wheel a tiny bit to avoid a rock or stick in the road, a collision would happen. Ebike users are presumably not aware of this.
Also, ebikes accelerate more quickly than a traditional bike, and MORE QUICKLY than CARS. Oncoming vehicles often times illegally turn left in front of a cyclist because they know they can turn past the bike before they get both feet on the pedals. Newer ebikes are so discreet, they look just like any bike and the driver has no idea how differently an ebike can accelerate. I am scared to death for ebike riders when I see how they accelerate around vehicle drivers.

I advocate for “transportation education” in schools, including pedestrian, bike, bus and car. Misspelling a word won’t kill you, but transportation might. Why don’t we make this mandatory education? I see and hear about so many incidents where 2 people simply disagree about the right way to travel (who has right of way, which lane to be in, etc.). When we share travel space with anyone, we are communicating with them. Even if we are not signaling, those around us are predicting out next move based on what we are doing. Every move by everyone, pedestrians on up, should be predictable, and we all need to be on the same page (or at least on the same book) to get there. More education along with opening up more dialog about transportation from a young age would nip any hazards ebikes pose in the bud.

I rode one on a recent vacation because a half-day ebike rental was included with my hotel package deal. My observations:

• The bike is powered by the human. It doesn't just go by itself if you aren't pedaling. The battery, when switched on, makes pedaling easier - especially up hills. I could set how much assistance I was getting, so on steep hills I would set for more, and on flat surfaces no help. I still got a workout.
• More help = faster battery drain. Keep that in mind if going on a long ride.
• It was easier on my knees to have less resistance than a traditional bike.
• I was able to ride up steep hills I would never have managed on a traditional bike. It wasn't a cakewalk, but it was easier.
• I was able to cover a greater distance as well, meaning more scenery.
• I still got a decent workout since I rode up in the hills. Not sure I'd get much of a workout on a flat road.
• Going downhill seemed much faster than on a traditional bike. It was scary fast.

Would I consider buying one? Yes, as I live in a hilly area and it would be nice to cover more distance and see more things in the same time frame. For me the price would need to come down quite a bit.

At the same time, +1 for everything amandaeve said above!

suzannesimmons3 wrote: »

They don't work unless you pedal (or they don't in the uk) and can only go 15mph

I recently overtook one travelling at over 20mph and as I pedalled past I saw his hand move on the throttle to speed up. Now that's cheating!
(Made me chuckle while I dug in deep though.)

The regs allow up to 15.5mph and power of 250watts but that amount of power would give a decent road bike a far higher top speed than that so assume that purpose designed e-bikes have a governor built in.
https://www.gov.uk/electric-bike-rules
The one I (only just) passed looked like a bolt on conversion kit.

If they get people out of cars, and potentially also into cycling, then they are a good thing.
The more cycles there are sharing the roads the more they are accepted as part of the road environment then hopefully cycling becomes safer for all.
Plus the reduction in congestion and pollution from cars being used for short journeys would be a benefit.

Trying to get my wife to consider one so she can ride with me but keep hitting the "but it would mess up my hair" objection.