| The Whole World’s Hopping on Electric Bikes |
| Written by Jaymi Heimbuch | ||
| Monday, 18 August 2008 | ||
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As gas prices go up and green thinking expands, it seems electric bikes are seeing a huge surge in popularity. Sales in the US nearly doubled last year, reaching 10,000 in 2007. And Amazon reported a 6,000% increase this summer from last year. Seems that while many bikes are priced between $1,500 to $2,500, it is worth it to people to invest in one that can cart them around with minimal effort. I’ve definitely considered the electric bike as city transportation, but figure that since biking is my only exercise, I better not slack off, even on the uphill climbs. Even in countries that have gotten around via pedal power for some time, battery-powered rides are looking more attractive. France is tied with the US in electric bike sales, and Germany reached 60,000 sales last year with expectations to double that this year. The Netherlands are taking the lead with 89,000 sales last year and a projected 121,000 this year. That is a whole lot of electric bikes. Seems that they’re getting pretty hip, and can be an excellent conversation starter. Though, with people needing to leave behind their first born child at the gas pumps, we can hazard a guess that conversation is not the main reason people are hopping on the electric bike bandwagon. Designs for bikes are becoming more varied and cost effective. There is one model that is only about $350, and a DIYer can rig something for a minimal cost as well. But for someone who wants some serious style, there is a fairly large handful of options. There are even pedal-less options so you’re more on the side of scooter than bike. Electric bikes are an excellent option for people who need to get around town, want to do it cheaply, greenly, and relatively sweat-free. Our EcoGeeky sides can get some great exercise by dreaming up ways to ever improve the weight, range, and clean chargeability of electric bikes. Neodymics is on to something with their bike-to-moped conversion kit. What cracks me up about this trend is that even former GM execs are on to it: "The electric bikes are the next big thing," said Frank Jamerson, a former General Motors Corp. executive turned electric vehicle guru, according to the Associated Press. This seems to definitely be an opportunity for ecogeeky cycle designers to explore. Via Associated Press, AutoblogGreen; Photo via qilin
Comments
(26)
electric bike going greenly?
written by Akos3D , August 18, 2008
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written by jello5929 , August 18, 2008
Electric bicycle emits less CO2 than human powered bicycle.
coal -> battery -> motor -> motion tofu -> human -> pedals -> motion The first one emits less C02 per mile than the second one.
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written by Jacob , August 19, 2008
China's been onto this for years, I'd be willing to bet that Shanghai alone topples the Netherlands figure.
central generation is more efficient
written by John , August 19, 2008
Akos3D, you get WAY more than 20% out of powerplant->battery->motor...
Some powerplants can operate at about 60% thermal efficiency with combined cycles. the loses on going to and from the battery are on the order of 10%, so even if you use a bad power plant (35%), bad batterys (85%) and a bad motor (85%) you still are a lot better than a good car, and that is efficiency alone. An electric bike is orders of magnitude smaller than a car, and therefor uses even less energy.
I love my electric bike
written by Michael , August 19, 2008
Yeah electric bikes are so fun, I modded a cruiser bike and go about 25mph, and go about 20 miles per charge, I talk about my experience a bit on my site http://electricbikesite.com
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written by Jim McDish , August 19, 2008
Less gas in the car, more electricity, more coal to make the electricity = skyrocketing electric bills. Dammed if we do and dammed if we dont!
RD www.FireMe.To/udi
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written by Brian , August 19, 2008
Um yeah, anyone who suggests electric bikes are no better than cars is either an idiot or has an agenda.
The weight difference ALONE makes it a complete no brainer. How much money and energy do you reckon are spent hauling thousands of pounds of metal (ie, a car) around?
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written by Casey , August 19, 2008
I like the electric skateboard: http://www.alteredelectricskat...videos.htm
Cool video on that page too.
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written by jello5929 , August 19, 2008
People who are arguing that this will raise electric rates or is as bad as the car are not thinking it thru.
First, a typical electric assisted bike in US is 250W-350W. Second, burning coal to charge this bicycle uses less fossil fuel energy than shipping you enough food to pedal it yourself. Third, it's not going to increase power consumption by that much. A 30 mile round trip is only going to burn about 500w-hr on one of these things. 500w-hr is nothing. That's an hour of gaming on a typical desktop computer. That's two hours of watching TV on a big screen DLP. One 20w CFL left on all day. Etc.
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written by Mike , August 19, 2008
All we are asking is to give eBikes a chance...having a motor is great for going up hills when you don't want to break out in a sweat as you ride to work, and it helps you go faster. Lots more people riding bikes to work means way less car fuel and maintenance costs. And more motivation to build bike only paths, I hope.
found a winner ampedbikes.com
written by Jason , August 19, 2008
I bought an electric kit from ampedbikes.com last year. I enjoyed it soo much I made an extra 40k this last year buying kits from them and building complete electric bikes. Great source for high quality low priced brushless models. The learning curve in electric bicycles is fairly steep. I started out with one of those loud bikes they sell at wallmart, learned about brushless and the rest is history..
GO E_BIKERS!! Jason
HA.. I have one
written by David C. , August 19, 2008
OMGZ it's Dave!
written by Rodger , August 19, 2008
Yeah i got one from www.AmpedBikes too!
It was a kit, so now my old beach cruiser is now a hill climber! LOL Thanks Dave!
oooops
written by Rodger , August 19, 2008
fubar'd the link to where i got my kit for bout 300 smackers... so... www.AmpedBikes.com
But yeah, now to remove all the rust off my other rim.. hmm..
yeah..
written by Free Xbox 360 , August 20, 2008
I need to buy me one of these. Esp. for use during the school year, getting to places on campus would be a breeze.
Don't get too exited
written by Matti , August 20, 2008
Electric bicycle emits less CO2 than human powered bicycle.
False. You got to eat food anyway if you want to stay alive. Old bike emits still less CO2 in the long run. With electric bike you got to charge batteries constantly and replace them. It is not carbon free operation.
Electric Bikes? Look at Shanghai!
written by WillG , August 20, 2008
I was in Shanghai in January. They outlawed new scooters, instead requiring electric bikes? What happened? They had to burn more coal to generate the electricity to charge the bikes. So which is worse?
I read an article called "Scooter Polluter" at http://economicefficiency.blog...luter.html which shows how scooter create more smog than cars, way more. I guess the issue is really where localities want to perform the trade off.
electric VS muscle.
written by matt , August 20, 2008
electric VS muscle?
I don't believe that it is a question of muscle VS electric. Basically electric bikes are a commuter. I ride my e-bike to and from work. I ride my mtn bike when I wanna go for a ride. I cannot show up in my office all sweaty, so I ride my e-bike. It works in the same manner that a train vs car does. a 6,000 lb train car gets about 900 miles per gallon when connected to the train. When we plug in our e-bikes at night it uses very little energy, no more than a lightbulb being on for about 20 mins. It is 1,000 times more efficient than a car for commuting. But yes, I do ride my road bike and mtn bike as well for fun and health. But I e-bike to commute every single day. Try it you might just like it. There are plenty of companies out there like ampedbikes, crystalyte, bionx etc etc. to convert an old bike in your garage into a 20-25 mph silent e-commuter.
E Bikes are really popular right now
written by Electric Bike , August 20, 2008
@AKOs3d You are quite mistaken in your estimates about the indirect emissions generated by EVs, even when the electricity consumed by EVs is from a coal fired plant, it still produces 95% less carbon emissions than IC engines.
@ Matt, you decision to use a bike for your commute is both admirable and makes eminent sense. Good for your waistline and your pocket book, to say nothing of the environment. 
SHEP
written by Greg , August 20, 2008
sunshine-solar panel-deep cycle batter-bicycle battery
=no coal/fuel burning
Wind and Solar
written by Uncle B , August 20, 2008
The modern, wind and Solar powered grid needs our bike batteries and lots of plug in hybrid car batteries to soak up all that irregular, uneven eco friendly un-industrial power when it is available! No CO2 no pollution no sweat!
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written by Jock Drummond , August 25, 2008
The ebike craze is hitting the world and in the US we are just beginning to realise the benefits in terms of environment and energy savings. The articles and corresponding comments are very interesting and encouraging. One issue however to get large numbers to accept electric power is by providing service. People will buy of the internet because it is cost effective but then when they run into issues, charges, motors etc. they don't have anyone to turn to and the majority don't ant to do it themselves. We need good solid product supported by a dealer network to make the electric bike world acceptable to the majority of commuters. We also need States to start considering ebike friendly roads and even electrical outlets in apartment complexes, offices and public buildings. If you are looking for a cool ebike review www.veloteq.com
Electric bikes = zero emissions, zero co
written by Tom Jolly , August 27, 2008
I don't know why everyone thinks electric bikes create any CO2 at all. You're missing part of the kit; 1. Buy solar panels. 2. Buy an electric bike. 3. Charge bike with solar system. See? Zero emissions. You still have the lead-acid to deal with, but that's recyclable.
Parking an electric bike
written by Leo Verkoelen , August 31, 2008
There is a now an increasing demand for electric bikes. How many years will it take before we get comfortable and cheap parkings for electric bikes including battery loading?
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written by heather , September 16, 2008
Hi! My husband and I both commute on e-bikes.
we both use ampedbike's conversions. I ride 22 miles each way to work, recharge at work and love every minute of it!
Electric Bikes Bicycles UK
written by michael , November 11, 2008
Thank u r information
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It uses coal/oil fueled power plants (especially in US) to make electricity, then converts the electricity into chemical energy, from then you again take out electricity to make mechanical power.
You can be lucky to get around 20% of efficiency out of this loop. Very similar to IC engines.
Not to forget hills of unuseable acid filled lead junk in two years time.