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Electric Bicycles Surging In Popularity
gollum123 writes "An accidental transportation upheaval began in China, where an estimated 120 million electric bicycles now hum along the roads, up from a few thousand in the 1990s. They are replacing traditional bikes and motorcycles at a rapid clip and, in many cases, allowing people to put off the switch to cars. The booming Chinese electric-bike industry is spurring worldwide interest and impressive sales in India, Europe, and the US. China is exporting many bikes, and Western manufacturers are also copying the Chinese trend to produce models of their own. From virtually nothing a decade ago, electric bikes have become an $11 billion global industry. In the Netherlands, a third of the money spent on bicycles last year went to electric-powered models. Industry experts predict similar growth elsewhere in Europe, especially in Germany, France, and Italy, as rising interest in cycling coincides with an aging population. India had virtually no sales until two years ago, but its nascent market is fast expanding and could eclipse Europe's in the next year. In China, electric bicycles have evolved into bigger machines that resemble Vespa scooters. These larger models are causing headaches for global transportation planners. They cannot decide whether to embrace them as a green form of transportation, or ban them as a safety hazard. Some cities are studying the halfway measure of banning them from bicycle lanes while permitting them on streets."
Two of the many reasons this may not catch on in the US:
One is drivers. I ride a (nonmotorized) bike to work twice a week. It would sure be nice if drivers here in the US showed that they had some clue that cyclists exist. This morning I got to deal with a woman who decided to pull her car over into the bike lane so that she could talk on her cell phone. On the way home, I got a teenage girl eating a banana while wanting to turn left in front of me without signaling. Other fun experiences include people swerving around me and cutting me off because they're too impatient to let me get across an intersection, and people yelling at me because I'm not in the bike lane (hey, sometimes cyclists do need to turn left, and in any case the law says that cyclists can ride in regular lanes).
Another reason is weather. US weather has more extremes than Europe. There's a reason that all the early colonists from England died of tropical diseases.
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The owners don't understand the concept of pride in their own possessions
I spent the past year in Beijing and can tell you it is not because of lack of pride in their possessions. It's a case of Chinese common sense: everyone knows the omnipresent theives want to steal shiny new ones, so the owner who wants to keep his has a ratty looking one.
Your friends must be motorists. In countries with high percentages of bicyclists, people would certainly disagree with the pedestrian classification. Studies have shown that bicycles belong on the road: Bicycle paths remove the cyclists from the view of motorists, which means that instead of preventing accidents, they cause them, especially at intersections. Bicycles certainly don't belong on the sidewalk, because actual pedestrians behave very differently from vehicles. Mixing pedestrians and cyclists is a recipe for disaster.
It's not just Chinese common sense. I used to work in Hollywood, which is actually kind of a dodgy place. I used to keep my truck unwashed and leave McDonalds bags all over to make it as unattractive as possible. In fact, I occasionally had to leave my pro camera in my car so I would stuff it inside a crumpled fast food bag and leave it lying on the floor.
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I really don't see this catching on in the US.
Here in Beijing lots of people (me included) ride electric bikes because it's too expensive to have a car and traffic jams are so bad it takes me 15 minutes to ride to the bank whereas it would take me about 1 hour to get there by car during rush hour traffic. Motorcycles aren't allowed in the center of the city so an electric bike is really convenient for getting around.
Then there's the question of money. I bought my bike for 2,100RMB (about $300USD). This is a little under half a month's salary for the average Beijinger so these things are very affordable especially compared to cars and motorcycles. I supect this is one of the reasons electric bikes are getting popular in places with a lot of poverty like India.
Then there's lifestyle. Here there's no Costco so I'm not hauling bags and bags of groceries at one time. Also I live in the neighborhood where I work so my commute is only about 10 minutes. That's the perfect range for one of these bikes. If you had an hour commute like many people in the US, you'd never be able to take the bike since the average charge seems to get me through about 45ish minutes before I really need to recharge. That's with peddling to help out the battery.
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That's a problem because toxic lead-acid batteries are popular in Shanghai. The US e-bike market is almost all NiMH and Lithium-based.
In many cities in China, including the major cities, motorcycles are not allowed within the city limits, this is one of the main reasons people opt for elec. bicycles though not the only one of course. As the article mentions these bikes are more and more like actual motorcycles while at the same time the driver is not required to have a license. Imagine thousands of "motorcycles" swarming around at high speed without a sound, other than sound of the breaks...
That is not entirely correct. The ones with less maneuver capability have right-of-way. And this means small sailboats several times.
Indeed, local laws do matter. Here in tx.us, the cutoff is going faster than 20mph on flat ground with a 180lb rider without pedaling, or a vehicle weight of over 100lb. Unlike several other US states, wattage isn't a factor in legality here -- but in those states where it is a critical factor, the law is ambiguous enough to allow a measure based on the entire system's real-world output at the wheels rather than the motor's nominal output.
Anyhow -- the (US-made) bike I own games these rules a little by being designed to run at peak efficiency when the user is keeping the cadence up -- so while it's capable of only 20mph without pedaling, 27-28mph is easy to sustain on flat ground. Serious cyclists (in better shape than I) and folks with Rohloff hubs fitted (which are now available from the factory with this year's models) have posted much higher sustained speeds; more to the point, unlike a sprint on a conventional bike, high speeds with the electric assist can actually be sustained over time.
With respect to pedals -- my preference is for the Crank Brothers Mallets (which are cleat-compatible with the Eggbeaters on my unassisted bike). Opti just started offering a wider range of pedals with their new bikes, and I'm very disappointed that their only clipless option is Shimano. To each their own, I suppose.
They work in the US too.
I live in the suburbs, I ride my bike up to my house, then into the yard, then in the back door, then stop in the bedroom and plug it in. I have a higher end model(1500w motor) and I commute 5 miles each way to San Francisco daily. the bike is faster than driving, and I've never ran out of juice, and I can tell down to the mile when I'll run out due to the very accurate power meter. I"m sure the bike would be stolen in 5 minutes were I ever to leave it outside, but it spends the day in my office and night in my bedroom.
I believe the trick with E-bikes is that everyone may or may not be able to use one, depending on their individual circumstances. You need:
1. A place to park it safely indoors at night
2. a place to park at your destination
3. no stairs
4. less than 10 miles each way of commute
5. willingness to deal with weather and assholes and danger.
That all said, I'll be donning helmet, rain gear, and gloves tomorrow morning.
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I live in London, but I live somewhere relatively cheap, so it's a 5-minute ride (or 8 minute drive, or 20 minute walk, or 20 minute walk+wait+bus) to the nearest supermarket.
There is a small shop less than a minute away, but it's only useful for beer, milk and frozen pizza.
My preferred route to cycle to work goes along the riverbank near a nature reserve, so there's no shops. It takes 30 minutes.
My more direct route takes 25 minutes, as I use the main road.
My public transport route takes 45 minutes, of which 20 + 10 is walking to and from the station. Of course, the station is very close to the shops.
I don't own a car, but it would take 20-40 minutes to get to work using one. It would be less-convenient for shopping after work, as there's probably nowhere to park at peak times on a work day. Most people round here only use their cars at the weekend. (But there's lots of traffic from people from outer London driving to central London.)
I work for a large international bicycle company. We've got an in-house team that designs cycling apparel. And I've always been put off looking at our online catalog, wondering why I have to look like a billboard on wheels. The truth is that I don't like all the high-graphic jerseys at all. However, if you are a distance commuter or otherwise undertaking a longer ride, it makes sense to get some of the right kind of clothing (frequently lycra, yes) to wick away sweat and also for freedom of motion & comfort. That being said, I try to wear some kind of loose-fitting poly-blend over any lycra. Nobody needs or wants to see that level of detail on me (hey, I'm a slashdotter).
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Indeed, although the conditions that have spurred popularity of ebikes in China are not the same as those poised to do so in the US. In China, the trend reflects rising incomes and the switch from regular bicyles to electric-assist bicycles (typically with heavy but inexpensive lead-acid batteries.) In the U.S., growth is likely to come (1) because lots of aging baby boomer knees could use a little help, and the number of aging baby boomers is exploding, (2) because the highest cost component is a good Lithium-chemistry battery, and investments in the electric car industry are pushing those costs down fast, (3) because of the Growth of Green, and (4) because they are just SO much fun. Interested? Please join us at http://electriccyclist.com/
Um with Electric bicycles pedalling is optional and an average speed of about 20 miles per hour is provided for you by the engine. There is no need to shower if you don't pedal. I commute about 3 miles and park my bike in the corner of the office. Door to door is less than 15 minutes, and thats faster than I can do in a car as I need to park a bit further away and walk. I don't think you can compare normal cycling to an electric bike, as electrics are much faster up hills than most cyclists so can produce pretty good average speeds. Living 20 miles from work is a bit far for an electric cycle, but you could do it in an hour without breaking a sweat.
I got on the road with my ebike in May of last year. I've got close to 3000 miles since then. I live in a city (Pittsburgh) with a lot of hills and my ride is 8.5 miles each way. I have to say that I get to work about 50% faster on average than driving my car. I also save over a thousand dollars a year on parking costs. My daily gas costs in my car were about $2.00. On the bike, it's less than $0.12 per day in electricity (including the half that I charge at work). I estimate the amortized costs of the battery to be about $0.50 per day, though I haven't had to replace my battery pack yet.
Needless to say, I am extremely satisfied with the experience, and I recommend it to anyone who's not afraid to try it. A few things I'd like to point out.
Anyway, I thought I'd share my experience. Ebiking is absolutely a viable and economic means of transportation.