Say NO to Mandatory E-Bike License Plates and Registrations - Bike East Bay
bikeeastbay.org
Tell the state legislature that increased regulation on legal e-bikes is counter-productive to traffic safety, sustainability, and equity goals.

cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/34367979

More barriers to cycling means more cars which means more dead cyclists. Help us defeat this terrible anti-safety bill.

  • EponymousBosh@awful.systemsEnglish
    101·
    3 days ago

    Lotta people here who apparently aren’t familiar with e-bikes, talking about how e-bikes perform. My RadRunner 2 has only ever hit 27 mph (43 kph?) going downhill on a steep incline, meanwhile I’m getting passed by dudes on $5000 fancy-ass racing bicycles. Not really sure why I’m the one who needs the license.

    (Also: I wish e-bikes were the biggest problem on bike paths here in Kentucky. I have encountered Actual Legit Gasoline-Powered Fucking Motorcycles many, many, MANY times on the Louisville Loop.)

    • zaphod@sopuli.xyzEnglish
      7·
      3 days ago

      There are different types of e-bikes, people throw them all in the same category and then complain about it. They just mean one specific type (throttle, no pedalling required, goes faster than what normal people can achieve while pedalling), but they confuse those with all other types of e-bikes.

    • FireRetardant@lemmy.worldEnglish
      34·
      3 days ago

      F=ma so therefore your ebike is still going to hit harder at the same speed as that ultra light racing bicycle because the e bike is heavier. There is also a skill factor here. It takes practice and skill to get a standard bicycle going that fast whereas anyone can get on an ebike and get it going that fast.

      I’m not certain lisencing alone is going to solve the problems but there are some important distinctions between bicycles and ebikes.

      • stickly@lemmy.worldEnglish
        4·
        3 days ago

        An average ebike only weighs ~25 lbs more than an average bike. That’s basically difference between an average woman and a man or within a standard deviation of the average man’s body weight. Should we only be requiring licenses for fat people?

        Just set the max speed on the ebike to a safe limit and call it a day. Your speed matters way more than the bike weight anyway (KE=0.5*mv2)

      • infinitesunrise@slrpnk.netEnglish
        2·
        2 days ago

        It takes practice and skill to get a standard bicycle going that fast

        It does not. As someone who does regularly do that on rides, I can vet that any able bodied kid can get a road bicycle to hit 40 on a long downhill, first try. The real difference is that they do not go seeking that experience, usually they’re just trying to get somewhere they need to be.

        Personally I’m good with “If it has a throttle-driven motor, it’s a motor vehicle” and just doing motor vehicle licenses as we always have. Maybe just lower the permit age if teens need access to motor vehicles, or ask ourselves why we built a society where teens need access to motor vehicles.