E-bikes remaining as vulnerable users.

[Squirrel Chaser]

Well it looks like e- bikes are going to remain as vulnerable road users in the EU.
That means no insurance is required and they have the same rights as cyclists and pedestrians.
All good I suppose but what about all this stuff you can buy to derestrict them.
For £150 I could make the maximum assistance speed 99kmh with various set ups through a phone app.
Court ruling will be in late December to classify e-bikes for road use.
So here we have the problem.

Say for example I'm doing 20mph on an e-bike in a 20mph zone and a car decides to overtake causing me to crash.
The car would of had to break the speed limit to get past me.
I claim for damages etc etc...
What I really wonder tho is weather cycling insurance is a good idea or does it just start a trend that can't be reversed?

As cyclists insurance is not necessary and as vulnerable road users we have right of passage in various situations...
BUT I think this e- bike thing is going to cause trouble ahead...

https://www.globalcyclingnetwork.co...ules-that-e-bikes-are-bicycles-not-motorbikes

 

[albion]

Derestriction is a criminal offence. You need tax, insurance and registration, the exact same as cars and motorbikes.

Illegal bikers are now shifting to illegal e-motorbikes. However it is still illegal drivers who are the main danger. They kill.

 

[classic33]

Well it looks like e- bikes are going to remain as vulnerable road users in the EU.
That means no insurance is required and they have the same rights as cyclists and pedestrians.
All good I suppose but what about all this stuff you can buy to derestrict them.
For £150 I could make the maximum assistance speed 99kmh with various set ups through a phone app.
Court ruling will be in late December to classify e-bikes for road use.
So here we have the problem.

Say for example I'm doing 20mph on an e-bike in a 20mph zone and a car decides to overtake causing me to crash.
The car would of had to break the speed limit to get past me.
I claim for damages etc etc...
What I really wonder tho is weather cycling insurance is a good idea or does it just start a trend that can't be reversed?

As cyclists insurance is not necessary and as vulnerable road users we have right of passage in various situations...
BUT I think this e- bike thing is going to cause trouble ahead...

https://www.globalcyclingnetwork.co...ules-that-e-bikes-are-bicycles-not-motorbikes

At 20mph you'd be over the limit they set, which is lower than the current speed limit.
Maybe they're looking at reducing the legal speed of e-assist bikes.

 

[Squirrel Chaser]

Derestriction is a criminal offence. You need tax, insurance and registration, the exact same as cars and motorbikes.

Illegal bikers are now shifting to illegal e-motorbikes. However it is still illegal drivers who are the main danger. They kill.

There's plenty of non ebike cyclists that are a big hazard on the road the way they ride.

 

[Squirrel Chaser]

Ok so I'm on a normal bike riding at 20 mph what's your point.?
E bikes can be ridden at any speed

 

[Squirrel Chaser]

At 20mph you'd be over the limit they set, which is lower than the current speed limit.
Maybe they're looking at reducing the legal speed of e-assist bikes.

E bikes don't have a speed limit same as a normal bike

 

[Drago]

The moment you hit 15.5 you're dragging round a load of dead weight and resistance that a normal bike doesn't blight you with. Sure, pulling away or climbing a hill they can be quicker than a regular bike, but despite public perception they are slower overall.

 

[albion]

The limit is 25kmh. Above that it is pure muscle power so you end up going slower than a lighter normal bike. As above.
So most people, like myself just relax and stick to 15mph max.

 

[classic33]

E bikes don't have a speed limit same as a normal bike

E-assist as mentioned in the piece you linked to, have a cut off assist speed. Which in the case you pointed out, is lower than the current limit.

 

[Squirrel Chaser]

The moment you hit 15.5 you're dragging round a load of dead weight and resistance that a normal bike doesn't blight you with. Sure, pulling away or climbing a hill they can be quicker than a regular bike, but despite public perception they are slower overall.

I'm faster all round on my ebike. When you hit the assistant limit switch the motor to off
mode and the drag stops.
I go just as fast above 16mph as a normal bike

 

[classic33]

Ok so I'm on a normal bike riding at 20 mph what's your point.?
E bikes can be ridden at any speed

The point, in this case, is that the court has recognised a lower speed than presently set for e-assist bikes.
They never mentioned e-bikes, which are motorbikes, in the same way an EV is still a motor vehicle.

 

[Drago]

So your ebike is different to everyone else's and is as light as a regular bike and has no additional resistance when the motor cuts out?

By the way, that was a rhetorical question.

 

[Squirrel Chaser]

I definitely will not be buying insurance for cycling on my ebike and regularly hit 40mph .
Riding at 20mph is easy and being overtaken by cars in a 20 mph zone happens alot.

 

[classic33]

I'm faster all round on my ebike. When you hit the assistant limit switch the motor to off
mode and the drag stops.
I go just as fast above 16mph as a normal bike

17 mph is the same speed however you reach it.

 

[Squirrel Chaser]

So your ebike is different to everyone else's and is as light as a regular bike and has no additional resistance when the motor cuts out?

By the way, that was a rhetorical question.

Drag yes but only when the assistant is turned on.
When I get to the assistant limit switching it to off stops the motor drag