Electric Bike News Week of 4-4-11
Apr 14, 2011
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Powabyke’s to be sold in the US
Time for another electric bike news recap! From the week of April 4, 2011 there was some interesting stuff happening in the E-bike news: People on moped style e-bikes having issues with the local police, the Busettii Big 50 electric bike review, the EU’s White Paper on Transport, a video of the Kalkhoff Pro Connect Sport 250, Powabyke’s in the US & more!
And now the Electric Bike NEWS!
This is a nice article about electric bikes from a recent sustainable living field day in New Zealand. Some great points about the benefits of electric bikes.
Do you live in Morris, Sussex, Warren, suburban Essex, Passaic or Union counties? If so you could be entered to win a Trek 7200 + electric bicycle by participating in the 2011 Northwest New Jersey Bike to Work Challenge starting in May.
Here is an interesting one; Police in Springfield Oregon have cited Paul McClain 5 times for riding his electric bike (a bike that looks more like a moped than a bicycle) without a license. Mr. McClain says he doesn’t need a license to ride his electric bike. The court will decide……
And here is another similar case where police in Ocean City, New Jersey have ticketed a woman for riding her moped looking electric bike as an unregistered motor vehicle.
Here is March’s Electric Bike Report T-Shirt winner!
Electric bikes are getting some attention from the Economist.com. They reference some rather high end electric bikes which I think gave some people sticker shock!
The EU has published it’s White Paper on Transport with some pretty ambitious goals of reducing green house gases by 60% by 2050. Unfortunately the idea of many people using bicycles and electric bikes has been largely overlooked in their report.
This is a video I put together of the features of the Kalkhoff Pro Connect Sport 250 electric bike. Full review coming soon!
The alliance between Cosworth (high performance engineering company) and Storck (bike company) is creating some high performance electric bikes soon to be sold in the UK, Europe and US markets.
Ciclavia, an event that promotes biking, walking, rollerblading, skateboarding, etc. was recently held in Los Angeles and the event drew thousands of people.
Powabyke, a UK based electric bike company, will start distributing their bikes in the US.
The Grace One electric bike/motorcycle started production recently in a partnership with Grace and Panther Werke AG. This is a powerful electric bike at 1300 watts, way above the limit to classify it as a traditional electric bicycle!
Well, that about wraps it up. Please share any electric bike news that you have come across in the comment section below.
Thanks!
-Pete
P.S. Don’t forget to join the Electric Bike Report community for updates from the electric bike world, plus ebike riding and maintenance tips!
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Thanks Pete for the information contained in this weekly roundup post about the Kalkhoff Pro Connect (pedelec version), the Grace One and the Storck Bicycles e-bike offerings. I actually live nearby several of the top German “Fahrradwerke” here in Northern Germany (Niedersachsen – Lower Saxony) and have just purchased a Kalkoff Agattu 24 Trekking/Touring bike for my own use.
It’s good to see that folks back home in the States are beginning to take a serious interest in e-bikes and that U.S. manufacturers and designers are also in the game. Thanks again for the info you publish here in Electric Bike Report. I will certainly come back again for updates in the near future.
Bill
Bremen, Germany
P.S. The Grace Pro and the Grace One ebikes/emotorcycles are beasts! I haven’t seen any on the road yet (Autobahn oder Fussgängerzone) but I may have to travel over to Berlin just to check one of those baby’s out firsthand. Are they legal for the road and bikepaths back in the States? Certainly not down in Flagstaff, AZ. are up in Eugene, OR.
Hi Bill, I am glad you like EBR! Yes the Grace bikes are cool but they
would not be legal for the bike paths here unless they were limited to a top
speed of 20mph and 750 watts of max power. As they are right now they would
need to registered as a moped. With that they could be used on the streets,
but not bike paths.
Upon reading your answer to my enquiry regarding “street legal e-bikes” in the U.S. I had a look at various websites to learn more about U.S. national and state regulations re: Electric Pedal Assisted Bikes___ YIKES! Looks a bit confusing from over here on this side of the Atlantic. I couldn’t even find straighforward information about the import duties and taxes on e-bikes at the U.S. International Trade Commission website (see interactive HTSUS database).
I cannot imagine what it would be like trying to explain to a local traffic cop, state trooper, or National Park ranger that a Grace One is a bike and not an electric version of a Harley Davidson motorcycle. What if you get pulled over while riding a Kalkhoff or Raleigh e-bike (both brands manufactured here in Germany)? Do the authorities ask for your papers (a handbook which may be written ‘auf Deutsch’) to make sure that the e-bike is in strict compliance with state/local regulations?
Looks as if we have a ways to go yet back in the States before pedelecs/e-bikes are considered a safe, fun, and innovative way to get around town or out for a tour in the countryside. I’ll bet that “Big Oil” and the U.S. auto manufacturers/retailers are behind all this confusion and controversy. Again, thanks for the information and looking forward to communicating with you and your community down the road.
Bill
Bremen, DE
Hi Bill, yes it is a bit confusing. Each municipality can have their own
rules and regulations. For now it seems that e-bikes are still a bit under
the radar and I have only heard of a few cases where there are any legal
concerns. Those usually arise when someone is riding an e-bike that looks
like a scooter on the bike paths.
The Grace is a bike that can go pretty fast and I think that it would
attract some attention from a police officer. Riding a Kalkhoff or Raleigh
would not attract much attention because I believe most of them stop
assisting between 15 and 20 mph (depending on the model).
As e-bikes gain in popularity we may have to have different classes of
e-bikes in the States because we know some people will want to go faster and
have more power!