The popularity of e-bikes isn’t slowing down • Hacker News Board

Re: The popularity of e-bikes isn’t slowing down

#41

Post by pcwalton » Mon, Nov 08, 2021, 8:52 PM UTC

rcMgD2BwE72F wrote: post #22

multjoy wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you remove the speed limiter you are riding an electric motorcycle, which needs to be somewhere other than with pedestrians and cyclists.

>with pedestrians Do some cities actually let cyclists bike on sidewalks? I bike 24/7 but this seems crazy. Bicycles needs their own, separate, protected paths, at the road level. Period.

Yes. Several cities in the Bay Area have shared sidewalks; e.g. Embarcadero in San Francisco, and Foster City has a ton of them. I don't know of any cities that allow all sidewalks to be used by bikes, but I'm sure some exist.

Re: The popularity of e-bikes isn’t slowing down

#42

Post by strombofulous » Mon, Nov 08, 2021, 8:52 PM UTC

monkmartinez wrote: post #11

I just built one with recycled laptop batteries... super fun to ride. It was a shit ton of work to do the batteries right, but I learned so much. Endless-Sphere is where my build thread is... My bike is 2004 Specialized mountain bike. Bought the motor from ebay and just bolted it on. The battery lives in a home sewn bag I made which I velcro strapped to the frame. I have gone about 35mph on it. Do not recommend super…

I've been thinking about doing the same thing but am worried it will explode on me. Are there any tips you have for starting out or mistakes to be sure to avoid?

I was hoping to use this as a project to learn electricity with and it sounds like you did something similar.

Re: The popularity of e-bikes isn’t slowing down

#43

Post by Someone1234 » Mon, Nov 08, 2021, 8:53 PM UTC

They're an absolute legal minefield though.

For example around here you can get a ticket for using one on both cycle paths and also on roads with a 40 MpH speed limit. So you're more legally limited than both a cyclist but also a moped user. The biggest reason why they're popular here at all is that laws are selectively enforced.

None of this is e-bike's fault of course, and the original Segway mostly failed because it too was banned from both footpaths but also many roads. Local city and states haven't evolved much to include new modes of transport outside the traditional (although some would call that a blessing as they don't want licensing/mandatory insurance/tax on e-bikes/e-scooters).

Re: The popularity of e-bikes isn’t slowing down

#44

Post by notatoad » Mon, Nov 08, 2021, 8:53 PM UTC

notacoward wrote: post #36

paulgb wrote: post #4

The thing that excites me most about e-bikes is that they change the politics around cycling. Proponents of efforts to make roads safer for cyclists have always gotten pushback from people who think that cycling is a niche hobby of rich lycra-clad yuppies. With e-bikes becoming more common, I know a number of people who would not have touched a bike share but are using it as a replacement for Uber/Lyft rides. People…

> they change the politics around cycling While I agree with e-bikes being a generally good thing, I also think they involve a lot of secondary consequences and we still need to figure out the best solutions. For example, having more e-bikes on the already overcrowded bike path near where I live is becoming a disaster . There had already been enough problems with mismatched speeds, impatience on all sides, etc. There…

this is exactly the politics around cycling that need to change. cyclists have been asking for better infrastructure for decades, and been told to go play in traffic because we're a weird niche interest group who can be ignored.

we need better infrastructure for non-car transportation. the short-term hell is simply more people experiencing what most cyclists are already used to.

Re: The popularity of e-bikes isn’t slowing down

#45

Post by pcwalton » Mon, Nov 08, 2021, 8:55 PM UTC

parineum wrote: post #27

paulgb wrote: post #4

The thing that excites me most about e-bikes is that they change the politics around cycling. Proponents of efforts to make roads safer for cyclists have always gotten pushback from people who think that cycling is a niche hobby of rich lycra-clad yuppies. With e-bikes becoming more common, I know a number of people who would not have touched a bike share but are using it as a replacement for Uber/Lyft rides. People…

I support the efforts to make cities more friendly to cyclist traffic but the increased popularity of both ebikes and electric scooters in downtown areas has made life as a pedestrian and a motorist stressful, especially around closing time. All the things that annoy me about cyclists (running stop signs when driving in the street and driving on the sidewalk are my two biggest annoyances) have gotten worse. Cycling a…

Regarding running stop signs, "Why Bicyclists Hate Stop Signs" is an important read: https://nacto.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Fajans-J.-and-M...

Re: The popularity of e-bikes isn’t slowing down

#46

Post by missedthecue » Mon, Nov 08, 2021, 8:55 PM UTC

Robotbeat wrote: post #31

They also don’t last as long (miles-wise, possibly time-wise as well?), so you may have the same person buying multiple bikes over time when the first one wears out or breaks or is stolen. Usually for electric cars, the vehicle enters the used market and doesn’t leave (for the junkyard) until 15-20 years and 200,000 miles later.

Are there any 20 year old electric cars?

Re: The popularity of e-bikes isn’t slowing down

#47

Post by notacoward » Mon, Nov 08, 2021, 8:56 PM UTC

kevincrane wrote: post #35

parineum wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I support the efforts to make cities more friendly to cyclist traffic but the increased popularity of both ebikes and electric scooters in downtown areas has made life as a pedestrian and a motorist stressful, especially around closing time. All the things that annoy me about cyclists (running stop signs when driving in the street and driving on the sidewalk are my two biggest annoyances) have gotten worse. Cycling a…

Most bikers only use the sidewalk when the road infrastructure as-is isn’t safe enough for bikers. And I fully agree that there are a lot of bad bikers, but a bad biker is a nuisance to a driver while a bad driver is a potential fatality to a biker.

> a bad biker is a nuisance to a driver while a bad driver is...

You're leaving out an entire category of users. Not that I'm surprised, having been in many of these debates regarding the multi use path near my home. "Share the road" turns into "get off the path" rather quickly, in my experience.

Re: The popularity of e-bikes isn’t slowing down

#48

Post by multjoy » Mon, Nov 08, 2021, 8:57 PM UTC

jacquesm wrote: post #39

multjoy wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because a moped that can go 30 over the legal limit is no longer a moped, it is a motorcycle and needs to be taxed, insured and tested as such.

My e-bike is taxed, insured and tested to the same standards as a light e-moto (in Germany, a Riese & Mueller 'charger'). The only difference with the bicycle version is the speed limiter setting.

That and it's not a motorcycle so you're not going to get stuck on for riding it on a bike path, surely?

Re: The popularity of e-bikes isn’t slowing down

#49

Post by ryukafalz » Mon, Nov 08, 2021, 8:57 PM UTC

kevincrane wrote: post #18

paulgb wrote: post #4

The thing that excites me most about e-bikes is that they change the politics around cycling. Proponents of efforts to make roads safer for cyclists have always gotten pushback from people who think that cycling is a niche hobby of rich lycra-clad yuppies. With e-bikes becoming more common, I know a number of people who would not have touched a bike share but are using it as a replacement for Uber/Lyft rides. People…

> Proponents of efforts to make roads safer for cyclists have always gotten pushback from people who think that cycling is a niche hobby of rich lycra-clad yuppies. Which I think is misguided pushback btw (which I think you agree with based on the context). I see it as a chicken and egg thing. The roads are unsafe for bikers, so the only people who bike are those who are super dedicated to it. Then when people ask fo…

> The roads are unsafe for bikers, so the only people who bike are those who are super dedicated to it. Then when people ask for the roads to be safer, it gets pushed back as "only biking enthusiasts use the roads now".

Yup. Bit like how it's hard to argue for building a bridge by the number of people swimming across the river.

Re: The popularity of e-bikes isn’t slowing down

#50

Post by Robotbeat » Mon, Nov 08, 2021, 8:57 PM UTC

packetlost wrote: post #5

I've long been of the opinion that the real winner in the EV market will be personal vehicles (such as eBikes) and electric mass transit, not larger EVs such as cars in most urban environments.

That’s unlikely. From a revenue standpoint, ebikes are cheap and you don’t need that many e-buses. Even if we go to Netherlands-level bike-friendliness, that’s only a 40% reduction in per capita car/truck ownership at best.

Doesn’t mean we won’t do a lot of miles by bike or bus, but as long as people have the money for it, they’ll still buy at least one car per household for cornercases that buses and bikes (& ride share) don’t address.

If we get really good public transit and bike infrastructure, the median American household will probably have a couple electric bikes, one or two electric cars, and at least one person will commute via electric bus or train. It’s gonna be “both and.”