Exactly. I support banning e-bikes (and anything with a motor) from barely existent bicycle/pedestrian paths/infrastructure. E-bikes can simply use the current beautifully supported motorized roadways.
Reflections on E-Bikes
11–20 of 188 posts
Re: Reflections on E-Bikes
#12It is not accurate to use $40,000 as the amount of money needed to get a car. A good new car can be purchased for half that, not to mention the used car market.
Car insurance, gas, maintenance, oil changes, tires, etc…
Total cost of ownership of a car is really high
Re: Reflections on E-Bikes
#13IMO, the number one hurdle for ebikes is theft. The things cost a decent chunk of money and there is basically no way to secure them properly. I have owned an ebike and it's such a fun way to get around, but I quickly sold it because I was in constant fear of it being stolen. And shortly after, one of my cheap non ebikes was stolen while locked inside my apartments bike storage area. I think electric scooters might h…
There is clearly a pain point in need of an innovative solution, might be a sizeable market.
HN will hate this but the solution is likely to serial number every part on the bike and software lock it down so if you take a battery or something from one bike, it becomes bricked when you stick it in another bike. This would get hard with non electronic parts like wheels though.
Re: Reflections on E-Bikes
#14>Bullitt bakfiet with multiple air conditioners in the front "box" Isn't that a festool vacuum (like a shopvac), with festool tool boxes on top?
It absolutely is. So those boxes all connect together, which would help keep them from falling out.
Re: Reflections on E-Bikes
#15Earlier quoted context omitted.
There is clearly a pain point in need of an innovative solution, might be a sizeable market.
HN will hate this but the solution is likely to serial number every part on the bike and software lock it down so if you take a battery or something from one bike, it becomes bricked when you stick it in another bike. This would get hard with non electronic parts like wheels though.
That wouldn’t eliminate theft but it would only make it worse for the consumer.
Re: Reflections on E-Bikes
#16IMO, the number one hurdle for ebikes is theft. The things cost a decent chunk of money and there is basically no way to secure them properly. I have owned an ebike and it's such a fun way to get around, but I quickly sold it because I was in constant fear of it being stolen. And shortly after, one of my cheap non ebikes was stolen while locked inside my apartments bike storage area. I think electric scooters might h…
There is clearly a pain point in need of an innovative solution, might be a sizeable market.
iPhones had a similar theft problem till they implemented decent anti-theft DRM. Now it's rare to see iPhones stolen.
Ebikes could do the same. It would be a shame for the 'hacker' crowd, but with locked down firmware and all parts cryptographically linked by serial number, there would be no valuable parts to strip from a stolen bike.
Re: Reflections on E-Bikes
#17It is not accurate to use $40,000 as the amount of money needed to get a car. A good new car can be purchased for half that, not to mention the used car market.
Car cost is also fuel, insurance and maintenance.
Old cars cost less upfront but often more on maintenance.
For most people housing > car > food (relative cost)
I think that 8 billion cars on this planet would not be reasonable.
This is a political issue about urbanisation and transportation, the next generations will have to make choices.
Re: Reflections on E-Bikes
#18I am an amateur e-biker. Luckily I live in a city with bikeshare so I don’t have to own one, I just rent it for my commute. 5 miles each way. It takes half the time as public transit used to. Before the bike share I would waste at least 90 minutes a day waiting for and commuting on public transit. Now it’s no more than 24 minutes door to door each way. I get mild exercise, and it’s fun! I still own a non e-bike (fat tire mountain bike) and I am in the 10-15 MPH range with that, plus it makes me sweat and be out of breath. The small difference of e-assist puts me in the 15-20 MPH range, and as described in the article it’s a night-and-day difference. I feel safe and assured, confident, like on a motorcycle. Almost can keep up with traffic. I don't identify as a cyclist like many of the true bike commuters in the area, but I often pass them on the bike routes. I try to be friendly, but I’m smoking them with my rental bike in my street clothes for 20 cents per minute. Today I got cursed out by a spandexed “real biker” as I passed by with my electric whirrrr. It really feels great to ride these bikes. What a time to be alive!
Re: Reflections on E-Bikes
#19Exactly. I support banning e-bikes (and anything with a motor) from barely existent bicycle/pedestrian paths/infrastructure. E-bikes can simply use the current beautifully supported motorized roadways.
This is a terrible idea for a multitude of reasons.
Thankfully, it'll never happen.
Re: Reflections on E-Bikes
#20IMO, the number one hurdle for ebikes is theft. The things cost a decent chunk of money and there is basically no way to secure them properly. I have owned an ebike and it's such a fun way to get around, but I quickly sold it because I was in constant fear of it being stolen. And shortly after, one of my cheap non ebikes was stolen while locked inside my apartments bike storage area. I think electric scooters might h…
you dont need to own an ebike. Bike sharing is already available in many cities and really awesome to use.