Comment by bjourne | Hacker News Reader

Comment by bjourne | Hacker News Reader

I truly believe e-bikes will be the future of transportation. What's holding them back is dumb legislation. In EU, they are limited to 25 km/h top speed and 250 W motors, which is not enough for everybody. Legislators think that if they are allowed to become more powerful then more people will die in accidents. True, but cars kill even more people so why don't we ban them?

For fit people in good weather, 250 W is plenty enough. But not for overweight people or people with movement disabilities. The energy required for movement is proportional to the weight, so it makes a ton of difference if the rider weights 100 kg or only 70 kg. To ride in rain or snow you need sturdier tires which means that the frame and motor needs to be heavier further contributing to the weight.

This issue is solvable but legislation is way behind. If, or when, e-bikes running at 30 - 35 km/h with 750 W motors becomes street-legal, they would become usable by almost anyone. You'd easily do a 15 km commute without breaking a sweat. I know because I've owned a bike like that which I used to ride in the winter. I sold it and bought a regular bike because I realized that I got zero exercise from it. The e-bike was more like a moped than a bike.

I don't know what you are talking about. E-bikes that go 45km/h already exist and they are already street legal. They are treated like mopeds. You just need a license like every other vehicle on the street.

>I sold it and bought a regular bike because I realized that I got zero exercise from it.

I don't know why you are asking for more powerful bikes and then complain about getting less exercise. You can turn on eco mode on most e-bikes and get partial assist.

"Bikes" whose top speed is 45 km/h are classified as electric mopeds and require traffic insurance and driver's license. They are generally not allowed to use bike lanes. They also require registration plates and turn signalling lights. That makes them much heavier than regular e-bikes.

> I don't know why you are asking for more powerful bikes and then complain about getting less exercise.

Powerful e-bikes are nothing for me, but would be very useful for the rest of the population.

I agree that the current EU limits are overly strict, but it's also true that powerful ebikes can accelerate unexpectedly quickly, moreso than is safe for many inexperienced riders or those around them.

Allowing for more powerful motors is fine, and up to 30km/h for top speed is fine, but I think instant acceleration should be the thing that's somewhat more limited than now.

I also would love to see more safe ways to ride bikes, but I don't see it happening anytime soon.

"Dump legistration" is the way it is as increasing the power and speed limits with inadequate infrastructure can significantly increase risk for pedestrians and bike riders, likely more than risk posed by cars.

Most places already have adequate infrastructure for cars to be safe enough.

Infrastructure changes such as adding more ebike only lanes need to come first, and this will cost a lot and even infeasible without first reducing the number of car lanes. This will result in conflict of interest between car owners and people who want to introduce such infrastructure changes.

Conflict of interest can only be resolved by politics, and it will take a long time for politics to work out as changing people's perception generally takes a long time.

>This will result in a conflict of interest.

This is accurate. I really don’t see this sort of legislation taking off. Too many special interests would be against any sort of encroachment on the car infrastructure we have. AARP would definitely fight this, and so would the oil lobby. That by itself makes it an unlikely proposition in my view.

If e-bikes are the future of transportation why dont people just get a vespa?

you pretty much end your argument with the line

For fit people in good weather.

The second part is more important than the first. You do leave out convenience and more with regards to carrying goods that these cannot offer.

Many places where people bike a lot like Netherlands and Finland have bad weather. So obviously it’s not correlated. I remember biking a lot while studying despite bad weather (even snow and ice). I think that’s more a fear of newcomers who are not used to outdoor clothes.

Agree...I've been regular-biking year round in SLC for about 9 years. Rain isn't a problem with good gear, and fenders. Snow gets removed or melts quickly. It's the air quality on days with inversions that are the issue for me. I've biked in single digits, and you are quite warm when you push it.

So, the future of transportation is an e-bike with more power so it can have higher top speeds, carry larger loads, and operate more safely in adverse weather conditions.

Of course, with higher top speeds you will probably want a windshield to protect the driver from bugs, debris, or precipitation. Hard to concentrate when you are getting hit in the face with stuff at 45 kph.

And really once the windshield is there, you should put a roof on too to provide better protection from the elements.

And a passenger seat or two. Maybe some storage. Maybe another wheel (or two) for better stability.

And then you have an e-car.

I know you are trolling, but what you are describing is an electric velomobile. Right now, they are too niche for mass production, but they are coming too. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CURGm-BcaaM

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