e-Bikes - Let's talk

[creadinger]

On recent visits to NYC, I've noticed a remarkable number of e-bikes -- and not the pedal-assist kind -- in spite of their being banned in the city. It definitely changed my perception of how popular they're likely to become. Given how heavily they are being marketed, it doesn't seem crazy to me that within a decade a large percentage (though perhaps not half) of bike sales will be electric or e-assist.

https://patch.com/new-york/new-york-...-slapped-fines

edit: Seems many of these bikes are for restaurant delivery

This is what I witnessed in Sydney, Australia too. A lot more e-bikes than expected, (WAY more than here) and a large proportion of seemed to be for local food deliveries. Deliveroo, and Foodora were two companies I remember seeing on the backpack or trunk cubes. I imagine it will only be a matter of time before they come to our large cities too.

[secstate]

UPS is making its love affair with bike lanes official (at least in Portland)

https://www.treehugger.com/bikes/ups...-portland.html

[Dewey]

UPS is making its love affair with bike lanes official (at least in Portland)

Interesting looking vehicle. A promotional video (with groovetastic soundtrack) lists the trailer as 4 feet wide and shows it being ridden on a section of sidewalk between two traffic bollards. The poor 500W motor is being severely worked hauling its 250lb unladen weight plus a claimed 600lb payload, unsure if that includes the rider.

Proposed Halloween model?

[dasgeh]

The only way a roadie is doing that speed on a trail is if the trail is empty. This is the type of speed you would do at Hains Point or on a road. Trails are way too winding and full or people to go that fast. An e-bike OTOH, could quite easily, as they can push speeds on hills and out of turns most road bike riders can't sustain.

So I commuted on the W&OD at 4am yesterday and 3am today; the nice thing about riding at that hour is not having to stop, but my average was still only 18mph. :-( I could have pushed a little harder, but that was fast for me. There are definitely much faster people -- and truer "roadies" -- out there, but averaging 22 mph on a commute sounds like it might be a push for a pro. And it would clearly be really reckless on a MUP if ridden at a time other than 3am or 4am :-)

Now 22+mph for a fast (HP) group ride or certainly a race, where drafting is involved, sure. I got the sense that Americancyclo's flyby was not from a road race.

Not debating whether this is a good idea, just whether there are folks around here that are capable of doing this on a road bike. Yes, there are. Plenty of them. If we're going to ban folks based on ability to go fast, then those guys would be banned too.

[dasgeh]

To hit that kind of share, E bikes would have to create their market, not cannibalize the existing market.

Yep, that's what the companies are gunning for -- converting people who don't bike now to people who do using ebikes. Why wouldn't we want to support that?

[EasyRider]

Not debating whether this is a good idea, just whether there are folks around here that are capable of doing this on a road bike. Yes, there are. Plenty of them. If we're going to ban folks based on ability to go fast, then those guys would be banned too.

Who is it that you are responding to that called for a ban on e-bikes?

[EasyRider]

I support more people on bikes. But if it takes turning a bicycle into a motorcycle to get people on "bikes," I have some reservations about turning MUPs into roads.

[Harry Meatmotor]

If we're going to ban folks based on ability to go fast, then those guys would be banned too.

Like this guy!

[TwoWheelsDC]

Like this guy!

Not a lot of riders out there who can put out...*squints*...zero watts.

[dasgeh]

Who is it that you are responding to that called for a ban on e-bikes?

There are plenty of comments on the thread that advocate for banning all ebikes from trails. My point to that is that banning based on ability would lead to a ban on certain roadies as well.