Environmentalists see opportunities as electric bike sales boom during pandemic

When the lockdown hit in March, sales of regular push bikes soared. People who were furloughed saw the impromptu sabbatical as a once-in-a-career opportunity to get fit and enjoy the outdoors.

But the more people explored the idea of cycling everywhere, the more enamored they became with emerging e-bike technology. Things, they discovered, were very different in the bike market from their expectations. Technology had moved on, and they suddenly found out that bicycles were way more practical that they thought.

Electric Bike Technology

Electric bicycles have been in the works for some time. Ever since 2010, there have been viable products on the market. Most busy people, however, were oblivious to the advances being made. Electric bikes were seen as nothing more than glorified mobility scooters to help unfit people cycle to work. 

But battery technology has come on so much now that people are seeing them as a form of replacement transport for their cars and motorcycles. 

For years, governments have been pushing the idea of bicycle transportation, particularly in Europe, to deal with congestion and pollution. But there were issues with it. First, people didn’t want to cycle to work. It was tiring. And once they got there, they had to take a shower because of how sweaty they were. And, secondly, there were mobility issues. Some people don’t have the strength or the fitness to ride a bike around town.

Electric bike batteries

Electric bikes with long-range batteries, however, appear to sweep these two issues aside. The rider twists the handlebar-mounted accelerator, and the vehicle will propel itself forward under its own power. For all practical purposes, it is precisely the same as a regular motorcycle. 

The great thing about e-bikes is that many of them qualify as regular bicycles from a legal perspective. Riders don’t have to insure them. And they don’t have to ride them on the road, as motorcyclists must. Instead, they can take them on permitted off-road routes, like a regular bike. And they can use cycle lanes in cities that have them. 

The safety aspect here, therefore, is considerable. Top-rated motorcycle crash attorney Justice Pays says that accidents on regular motorbikes can result in broken bones, paralysis, permanent disability, and traumatic brain injury. And most of these injuries occur because of the reckless and negligent behavior of other drivers. Drunk drinking, texting while behind the wheel, speeding, and operating a vehicle without proper maintenance checks are all significant issues. 

The new battery-powered technology promises to sidestep these considerable risks and put rider safety first, dramatically transforming transportation. Opening up cycle lanes will lead to a reduction in injuries.

Environmental Opportunities

It’s not just riders’ bodies that stand to benefits, either. Environmentalists see the surge in e-bike sales as a good option for dealing with city transportation issues and making transport more accessible to low-income people. Electric bicycles do not churn out any toxic fumes as they make their way around cities. And except for their motors’ quiet whine, they’re silent, reducing noise pollution generated by regular motor vehicles. 

They’re also a way for city planners to avoid some of the costs associated with accommodating motor vehicles. Constructing new intersections and parking lots isn’t cheap. It also profoundly affects land use. However, bicycles are easily stored and take up very little space on existing roads. You can achieve a much higher traffic density than that currently afforded by private motor vehicles. 

Bicycle makers see the opportunity and are looking to increase the production of electric-powered variety. UK-based firm, Volt, for instance, says that it will be opening a new bicycle production factory in Milton Keynes in England. It will rent out a total of 20,000 square feet of space, employ 30 people, and attempt to sell more than 25,000 bikes per year over the following decade. 

Opening marketplaces for electronic bicycles

Bolt – an Estonian company with a name surprisingly similar to its rival – says it is opening up an e-bike business. However, it wants to provide “bike-sharing.” The scheme will potentially make it even cheaper for people to get around cities, paying only for the journeys they make. The company has its sights set on Paris, but plans to expand over the rest of Europe once it gets the scheme to scale. Whether bike sharing is a good idea in the era of COVID-19 remains to be seen. 

The market itself is also booming, providing opportunities for people throughout the industry. Reports indicate the bike sales are up more than 60 percent since April, as people turn to two-wheeled transportation to avoid COVID-19 on public transport. Data reveal that electric bike sales were up 50 percent in April, accelerating the already-impressive 29 percent increase in the first quarter of 2020. 

Environmentalists quick to pick up trend

Environmentalists have been quick to pick up on the trend and see it as a way to reduce carbon emissions.  E-bikes, they say, are a technology that could replace the majority of intra-city car journeys, reducing both the environmental and economic cost of transportation, freeing up resources for other activities. 

The vision they paint of the future is an exciting one. For years, governments have waxed and waned on the topic of the motor vehicle. In an age of pandemics, public transportation suddenly seems like a terrible idea. The electric bicycle, therefore, has arrived in the nick of time. In 2020, the technology finally reached a tipping point, providing riders with an impressive range and doing so at a modest price. The average cost of a 300W e-bike is currently around $1,000, which is affordable for the vast majority of people, even those on low incomes. Plus, many of these bikes come with more than fifty miles of range, providing ample assistance, even on the longest commutes. 

Electric Scooter Market On The Bounce

Environmentalists also see COVID-19 as an opportunity to turn the electric scooter market around too. Governments had been particularly unkind to scooters in the run-up to 2020, fining riders without a license and outright banning them from city streets. The police, in particular, behaved terribly. 

Governments are realizing the errors of their ways and making provisions to allow scooters back on the road. And, consequently, the industry is booming, just as you might expect. 

Since the start of 2020, many e-bike makers have been shedding jobs. Popular brands like JUMP, Bird, and Lime have cut more than 1,000 people from their payrolls in an attempt to scale back their operations and save money. Venture capitalists were pulling out. But thanks to the recent change in government policy and the market demand for personal electric transport, they’re all rushing back in again. Scooters are once again the hottest topic in micro-mobility. 

Conclusion

Therefore, wrapping up, it seems like we might be on the cusp of a structural change in transportation. Everyone in the electric personal transportation sector stands to benefit from wider forces at work in the economy and society. Riders of electric bicycles are much safer than their bus-going counterparts. And poor economic conditions are going to make regular vehicle purchases more difficult. With so many people out of work, traditional motor vehicles are going to see demand tank – at least temporarily. 

Environmentalists are, understandably, rubbing their hands together with glee. The destruction of the economy and the need to maintain social distancing are bringing in their vision of the future through the back door. Hopefully, though, we can have a win-win outcome whether everyone benefits. Workers riding e-bikes have more money in their pockets because they’re not using cars to get to the office. And environmentalists can salivate over charts of declining CO2 output.