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Why buy an
ELECTRIC
bike
Ten good
reasons.
1. Hill climbing
That may
sound obvious, but it's the primary advantage. A good electric bike
effectively flattens hills, increasing your average speed and
eliminating the 'groan' factor when a gradient comes into view. Provided
you supply a reasonable amount of effort, you can expect to climb hills
of 1 in 10 (10%) on an electric bike with ease, and clear a maximum
gradient of 1 in 7 (14%), or much more.
2. Safety
It
sounds unlikely, doesn't it? But the mathematics is compelling. Think of
a steep and busy road, with cars climbing at 60km/hr. If you previously
slogged up the hill at 6mph, but can tackle the same gradient at 20km/hr
with an electric bicycle, you will see 33% fewer cars, and they will
pass you at 25km/hr rather than 40km/hr. Or at least, we think that's
right. Whatever the figures, there's no doubt that an electric bike
helps to keep you out of danger. The same applies to road junctions -
the faster your acceleration, the sooner you can get out of trouble.
3.
Cost
Purchase
cost is broadly similar to a conventional bicycle, mechanical wear and
tear is unlikely to cost more, and electricity is so cheap as to be
largely irrelevant, but there is an extra expense in terms of battery
depreciation. Consequently, an electric bike costs more to run -
typically $0.04-$0.08 per km against $0.03 per km for a non-assisted
bike
(a).
However, electric bike running costs should really be compared with
those of a moped, or a car, when the electric bike replaces car mileage.
With cars costing $0.50-$0.80 per km, an electric bike can save a great
deal of money.
4.
Personal Fitness
Surely a
conventional bike will keep you fitter? That, of course, depends how
much - if at all - you use it. Research
(b)
has found that 46% of conventional bikes are used only once or twice a
week, with a further 30% being used once a fortnight or even less. By
contrast, a recent survey of electric bicycle owners reveals that a
third ride their bike at least once a day and 81% use the bike at least
once a week
(c).
The figures confirm our experience that an electric bike typically gets
used at least twice as often as a conventional machine. Because riding
an electric bicycle is a great deal more enjoyable in hilly country,
into strong winds, or when carrying heavy loads, users tend to make
better use of them. The motor provides up to half the effort, but more
regular use means more exercise for the rider.
5. No
Sweat!
Sweat
may not be a serious issue when you're out for a leisure ride, but it's
more important if you're cycling to work. Although some employers are
rather grudgingly providing showers and other facilities for cyclists,
the great majority have no intention of doing so. An electric bike
eliminates the problem at source. In hot weather, it's possible to
maintain a normal schedule by transferring a bit more load to the
electric motor. In colder weather - or if you feel in need of exercise -
just throttle back, or turn the motor off.
6.
Clean & Green
Electric
bikes obviously consume energy, where a conventional bikes does not (if
we ignore the environmental cost of growing and processing food - see
below). However, the amount of energy used is very small compared to a
moped, motorcycle or car. The only consumables are the batteries, and
these can normally be recycled when life-expired. As for energy use,
electric bikes typically consume fuel at an average rate of 100 to 150
watts of electrical energy, against 15,000 or so for a car (admittedly
travelling much faster). In terms of fuel consumption, an electric bike
achieves about 290 - 700 litres/kilometre
(d).
No other commercially available vehicle can match figures of this kind.
If it's hard to place these numbers in your own lifestyle, think of a
100 watt electric light bulb burning unnecessarily for an evening -
that's enough energy to propel an electrically-assisted bike for 35-70
km...
7.
Genuinely Sustainable
There's
a lot of nonsense talked about sustainability in transport, but an
electric bicycle can be made genuinely sustainable. Purchase electricity
from a 'green' supplier, or generate your own with a roof-mounted
windmill or solar panel array, and the vehicle's fossil fuel consumption
will be zero. Surely a conventional bike does that already? Only if you
grow the food you consume whilst riding it. Unfortunately, most modern
food production and distribution is so fuel-intensive that the
consumption of a typical cyclist is not terribly good.
8.
Faster travel
In
theory a car can average a high speed, but in practise speed often falls
below 15km/hr in cities. The problem is congestion - motorcycles get
around this to some extent, but they're still confined to the road
network. An electric bicycle can maintain a higher average speed than a
bicycle but take advantage of the same network of cycle facilities,
giving ready access to areas that cars and motorcycles cannot reach. The
result is often a faster door-to-door journey time than any other mode.
9.
High Resale Value
Electric
bikes are new technology, and it's early days yet, but the evidence
points to a much better resale value than a conventional bike. True, a
typical electric bike costs more to buy, at $1500-$2500, but you'll get
most of that back if you sell the machine on.
10.
Motorised, but no Red Tape!
You know
how it is... MOT due, log book missing, insurance cost rising year on
year. Electric
bikes are treated just like ordinary bicycles for legislative purposes,
so there's absolutely no registration or legislation to worry about. You
are of course free to insure the machine if you wish, but there's no
compulsion to do anything but enjoy yourself! |