Electric Bikes Gaining Ground

By Noel Smith

If you want to try riding a bike that can allow you to commute that 5, 10 or 20 miles to work, assist you in going up that hill on your street, or help you keep up with your younger family members and friends, it’s time to consider an e-bike. Now is your chance to give it a try on Saturday, June 27 at the Cabrillo Farmers Market from 8 a.m. to noon. Bike Station Aptos will have twenty (20!) e-bikes available for you to test drive.

According to Bike Station Aptos owner Joanne Thompson, “Americans are 10 years behind the Europeans in their appreciation of the e-bike with its personal and social benefits. More people would be using a bicycle for fun and for daily travel if they know of the advantages of riding a bicycle that just assists them but doesn’t take away from the joy of exercise.”

Its battery is recharged from the power grid and the modern e-bike can also be configured as a hybrid vehicle with power from the rider in the “recuperation” mode through a generator. E-bikes now come in all models from off-road to cruiser to performance.

The idea of having an electric powered bicycle has existed since the 1880’s. An electric bicycle, also known as an e-bike, has an integrated electric motor to be used for propulsion. There is a great variety of e-bikes available from those that only have a small electric motor to assist the rider’s pedal-power to the more powerful e-bikes which are closer in power to a combustion engine assisted bicycle called the moped. However e-bikes and mopeds both retain the ability to be pedaled by the rider and therefore are not motorcycles.

E-bikes use rechargeable batteries with some models able to travel up to 20 – 28 mph. In Europe, they are gaining in popularity and taking some market share away from conventional bicycles for commuting and even for off-road riding. In the Far East, such as China, they are replacing fossil fuel-powered mopeds and small motorcycles.

The operative word for those considering an e-bike for commuting or just cruising is “assist.” Modern electronics allows the rider to adjust the amount of assist they want and for the bicycle to monitor the amount of effort the bicyclist is using so the motor can keep the percentage of assistance constant. The term “pedelec” (from pedal electric cycle) is an e-bike in which the pedal-assist electric drive system is limited to a top speed, and the motor is relatively low-powered. An e-bike conforming to these conditions is considered to be a pedelec in the EU and is legally classed as a bicycle.

The modern e-bike’s electric motor only provides assistance which is especially useful when the rider is riding against a headwind or going uphill especially useful for people living in hilly areas or when riding a bike may prove too strenuous to use as a daily means of transport. They are also helpful for seniors who would generally appreciate some assistance.

Try test-driving an e-bike. It may be the answer to getting you “out and about” and on the road again.