Why We Don’t Bike More – Can Electric Bikes Help?
Guest blog by Jace Hobbs (Electric Bike Hub*)
You love to bike, always glad when you arrive home from that bike ride, but still you don’t get out as much as you would think.
My theory is that it’s that one big hill that you have to huff over, that one part where the wind just slows you to frustration, or that narrow patch of road that you must pedal along where the cars are just too close for comfort. How true is that for you?
I’ve known folks that wanted a view from the house, built up a steep driveway, and positively hate having to push the bike up that hill, their hill! What if you could take that particular problem and obliterate it? You’d be left with all the great portions of the ride. If not for that one big disincentive, a lot of us would bike more.
My suspicion why we don’t make the bike our primary transportation mode is we can’t always feel like pedaling over that hill or quite as far as our shopping trip needs to be.
To be fair, we can’t be expected to, but if our biking experience had the option of a super-efficient, quiet motor assist, we will might make this choice quite often, perhaps making bikes our primary transportation. This is where an electric bike shines. Electric bikes flatten a few hills, keep up with traffic better for safety, and you can simply be dragged to windward like a hand pushing you on the back. You’re cruising again and you have got a week’s groceries and your kid on the back who loves the ride. There are some added benefits to electric bikes that may win you over:
- Electric bikes allow us to stop and greet that person we like so well, see so seldom, but stopping the car in a parking spot is too difficult.
- Electric bikes allow you to park right at that farmers stall in the market, right in front of the grocery, right at the bank door. No parking fees, no hunting for a spot.
- Electric bikes can get you away from the polluting fumes of cars on our roads and onto bike paths and byways. Did you know that even when you are driving your own car, you are inhaling what experts judge is the worst air you will ever breathe.
- Electric bikes just may reform our communities away from the private motorcar, resulting in fewer roads, more bike paths, more green space and a cleaner environment.
We are not dreaming some future invention; they are here for us today.
(* Electric Bike Hub has locations in many towns of New Zealand. Jace is the national importer and distributor for eZee electric bikes, a world leader in electric transportation. His website is www.electricbikehub.co.nz)
Fullers (CAA Sponsor)
Themocracy
Hi
one reason why we are not cycling in NZ anymore could be that cycling organisation focus nearly exclusively on cyclist safety.
Wear a high vis jacket, wear a helmet etc. and therefore drawing a picture that cycling on NZ roads is something for suicidal idiots. Safety is good, but what does it help if it is not accompanied by some education of car drivers. Where are the programmes to educate car drivers. with around 2/3 of the accidents being the sole fault of a car driver it all sounds like blaming the victim.
If you want a cycle culture you have to look at both sides. Make the cyclists and the car drivers behave but dont just focus on the actions of the cylists
Cheers
stefan
Thanks for your comments smu. It’s a shame you were not at the coroner’s inquest yesterday for Jane Bishop’s death – see our blog above and my submission. Bevan Woodward and I represented the official advocates orgs, while Alex Macmillan did a superb preso on her doctoral work on cycle culture and public health re cycling. All good stuff – you would have been cheering to have heard us dispelling myths about hi-viz and any suggestion that the fault lies all with cyclists. We are always keen to have more help to represent cyclists – come on board.
Hi smu – I’d argue “that cycling organisation focus nearly exclusively on cyclist safety” is incorrect. Have a read through all the posts of our blog, and see the many varied things we, and other cycling organisations, are working on. Not a lot of stuff here is about high-viz and helmets, you will find.
Amongs other things, one of our committee members has just completed a trial programme of bus and truck driver workshops, that teaches them to better coexist with cyclists on the road (blog post will come soon).
One our our main criticisms of the current government road safety strategy is that it considers skills training for cyclists, but did not include greater emphasis on motorist behaviour around cyclists in driver’s education, despite our submissions in that regard.
One of the key comments in many of our submissions is that cyclists, according to the Ministry of Transport themselves, have primary responsibility only in 25% of all vehicle-cyclist crashes. It’s practically our standard chorus!
You may be frustrated that NZ as a whole concentrates too much on cyclist behaviour, rather than on the bull in the china shop – but be assured that cycling organisations are well aware of the difference.
My new favorite topic is the electric bike.
My wife and I have been riding Giant Halfway folding bikes for the past few years and love them for there city friendly ride. The joy of cycling is a bit like the slow food idea in that it shares the values of slowing down and leaving hyper space for real space , human space.
The problem with our cycling was that we could only really enjoy a limited range also we refuse to wear lycra and enter into the competition/hyper mode of cycling, truthfully we are too old for all that hard work. However we are not too old to give up.
Recently I had to go to the dentist and the car was elsewhere . I resolved to ride my bike on the 6km trip (12km return) and see how it went. I found out one important thing it was better than taking the car except for a couple of hills that were just a little too much hard work to be fun. Going up the last hill I thought what I need is a little help on this hill. Thus started my research into power assisted electric bikes.
I spent many hours researching the different options , as well as searching youtube clips for quicker information assimilation. Here are the main points that I found interesting:
1. If you twist the trottle to go, it is really a scooter. If you pedal to make it go it is a bike.
2. The average human can pedal a wattage equivalent of around 200-250 watts any more power is for the next “jack ass” movie stunt team. Bikes are already engineered for the power range of the 200 to 300 watt motor.
3. Lithium battery power is really well proven and upwards of 175 million electric bikes have been made and the number is jumping up as people realize the benefits.
4. Pedal assist often has 3 modes ,low,med,high with 6 or 7 gears on the cluster that is like 18 or 21 speed on a regular bike.
5. On test riding I prefer rear wheel drive versus front wheel because the uphill is where the motor is your new best friend “Lance Legstrong” and front wheel can lose traction as weight transfers to the back of the bike.
6. its a no brainer. It takes the place of a second car.
It costs at least $5000 per year to keep any car on the road reg ,insurance,wof,petrol,tires, so if you can fit panniers to your electric bike you have a great shopping basket. Over 20 years that is $100,000 saved and less pollution etc.
After all my research I felt informed enough to look for a bike to buy, that story will follow if anyone is interested. I now have 2 models.
I do feel a challenge should be put to Mayor Len Brown re Auckland future transport and increased cycling options . How about a one off $500 rebate on your rates towards buying an electric bike for your commute! Len and his council just sent me and thousands of others a letter telling me my rates are going up. That mail out alone probably cost $200,000 , for information I had already for free from the news. How about put that PR budget into a real future transport solution like a commuter/bike scheme.
A final word on safety I always wear a helmet and ride defensively, I know I am not in the Tour de France and am happy looking a little dorky (Nerds used to look dorky too ,now they own Google ). I note the promotional video on your site Jace shows only one rider wearing a helmet,the rest look like Hollywood actors on Fantasy Island, why not get some kiwis we can relate to in frame, just a thought.
Cheers
Hi Peter – would love an e-bike rebate, but I think with everyone hammering him for daring to suggest that we spend 2 billion on rail in Auckland in the next decade instead of 10-20 billion (!) on motorways, Len Brown is currently a bit skittish of being seen as handing out money to what opponents could too easily call “special interests”.
My father in Germany also loves electric bikes (well, until the batteries failed, he had one of the earlier models) – I haven’t really looked into them yet (though an hour ago, huffing up a hill in Remuera coming back into town, I might have been tempted to sign on!).
Hi Max,
I can still remember “think big” Rob Muldoon , we used to rename it “sink big”. Sure some major infrastructure is essential and if it must be co-ordinated across the super city model allowing people to use their bike for part or all of their travel can have huge impact on lowering overall costs.
I see the electric bike as a hybrid vehicle that does not diminish the cycling experience but makes it a lot more practical and available as an alternative to the car.
The thing that sold me on the idea was a test ride on a folding e-bike that I took up a couple of the hills in my area .It was a good feeling to climb them with little effort , you still need to pedal , which I think is a good thing from the point of view that you are not out of the equation and you get moderate exercise. I rode several sizes and configurations and I like the 20″ wheel size folding for urban rides, it is more friendly in the city spaces. I also have a 26″ wheel mountain/road bike which initially I didn’t feel that good on, it needed some tweeks in the set up which I did and when I added a rack and panniers it is really great for the “beer run” and shopping from the local market. I like the whole cargo carrying concept and practicality. Top speed on this bike on a down hill 43.5 km/hr ,avg speed 18 km/hr .
Both bikes have cycle computers (cheap trademe ones) so I can do some calcs on speed and distance vs battery charge life . So far battery life is not an issue as I like to pedal as well, so I get more distance per charge.
I think cyclists should give it a go and see how it feels.
Cheers
I have a plain Diamondback commuter bike to which I retrofitted an electric motor from a kit supplied by Jace last December, mostly so I could commute to work. I live in Grey Lynn and work in Otahuhu/Mangere – about 17km. With the e-bike I can get there in 35-40 minutes, coming back it’s frequently faster than a car (I pedal as well, saves going to the gym!). I use the cycleway alongside the SW motorway, the old Mangere bridge, and there are some great views along the way. Winter was a bit cold on the fingers until I got better gloves. I ride in my work clothes – the e-bike means you don’t need to shower at the other end and can get straight to work. The battery lasts fine (I use about 60% in a day), and I charge it when I get home. Charging takes 2-3 hours and costs about 7 cents. I use a thumb throttle on the left side, so it doesn’t interfere with the Nexus gears on the right side. It’s a fabulous combination for the city.
Best safety device (apart from the high viz) is my rear view mirror. On Dominion Rd it makes a big difference knowing what’s coming up behind you.
Cheers