TFL e-bike ban

[classic33]

Nope they can just give Virgin Atlantic, British Airways or just the Iata a call and they will tell them how they go about if an wheel chair battery is approved or not. That is the same principle wheel chair batteries are no more of an risk then ebike batteries at least on paper.
And people flouting those rules are the British Transport Police's job to act upon.

The thing with motorised wheelchairs and mobility scooters on trains(buses for that matter) is that they have a verification scheme. At the end of which you are given a pass for that particular wheelchair/mobility scooter.
They require written documentation from the supplier as to what battery(ies) are on a particular wheelchair/mobility scooter. Change it, your pass is no longer valid and they can refuse to allow it onboard. You also have a brief test to take. I know of no such scheme covering e-bikes, legal or not.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

The thing with motorised wheelchairs and mobility scooters on trains(buses for that matter) is that they have a verification scheme. At the end of which you are given a pass for that particular wheelchair/mobility scooter.
They require written documentation from the supplier as to what battery(ies) are on a particular wheelchair/mobility scooter. Change it, your pass is no longer valid and they can refuse to allow it onboard. You also have a brief test to take. I know of no such scheme covering e-bikes, legal or not.

DO mobility scooters use Lithium batteries??

I looked at one a while agoi that clearly use old fashioned lead acid types - sealed but still not the type that has the "IT WILL EXPLODE AND YOU WILL DIE" headlines

 

[classic33]

DO mobility scooters use Lithium batteries??

I looked at one a while agoi that clearly use old fashioned lead acid types - sealed but still not the type that has the "IT WILL EXPLODE AND YOU WILL DIE" headlines

The smaller ones certainly use them. Larger ones I'm not so certain.

 

[mjr]

As much as I dislike "ebikes" I still can not get behind a rule that makes no sense. How exactly are folding "ebikes" safer than non- folding ones?

I suspect it's because they're more expensive, and it's more difficult to make a neat-looking one yourself with random online-auction parts because the parts would need to fit on/around the custom parts on most folding bikes, so it's beyond the people who don't care and gaffer tape whatever battery they can get onto a MTB frame.

If you ban the weird one wheeled things, what's to stop the guy putting it in a bag and just walking on with it? Same for the scooters too.

Nothing that I know. Another thing that makes this "ban" even less enforceable than checking EAPC plates.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

I suspect it's because they're more expensive, and it's more difficult to make a neat-looking one yourself with random online-auction parts because the parts would need to fit on/around the custom parts on most folding bikes, so it's beyond the people who don't care and gaffer tape whatever battery they can get onto a MTB frame.


Nothing that I know. Another thing that makes this "ban" even less enforceable than checking EAPC plates.

As far as folding ebike goes

they are also un-cool

so the sort of person who will nail a 1000W motor to the back wheel and gaffa tape a cheap battery with extra cells forced in - will just not be seen dead on a folder

so on that basis - they are more likely to be as manufactured rather than "modified"


still does not make sense

 

[dutchguylivingintheuk]

The thing with motorised wheelchairs and mobility scooters on trains(buses for that matter) is that they have a verification scheme. At the end of which you are given a pass for that particular wheelchair/mobility scooter.
They require written documentation from the supplier as to what battery(ies) are on a particular wheelchair/mobility scooter. Change it, your pass is no longer valid and they can refuse to allow it onboard. You also have a brief test to take. I know of no such scheme covering e-bikes, legal or not.

They have not, there are verification schemes but they are for the rider, to make sure that someone without legs isn't suddenly going to walk and therefor claim ''perks'' that person is not entitled too.
Coming from lived experience (my wife needs an wheelchair) she or we have never been asked for said documentation, but even if we did we did acquire it for the airport, then you get an piece of paper that says what batteries it has, since there is no seal on the battery casing it doesn't ay a lot. and there are 301 wheelchairs that look exactly the same that ship directly from China/aliexpress. We now have an much more expensive one and although that brand is much more reputable, the issue still stays the same the battery isn't really sealed so we still don't known if someone replaced the cells and if someone did how capable he was. (alltough i think you have to trick the software too with the expensive one)

But the point is s bit the same as looking for medical issues i always prefer to do that in dutch, not because i don't understand the englsih part but in general dutch websites including those from the government don't tell me just ''you have pain in you left pinkie, call the Ambulance immediately'' but they first give the advice why you need to go to the hospital directly and give explanations about what would happen if you don't go.

I think that's more of the way to go with these things because this ban comes 20 years to late so it's better to setup an system that allows people to gain knowledge, options etc. etc. so that we don't need bans like this anymore because poeple know how to make batteries secure and/or how to check if they are safe.

DO mobility scooters use Lithium batteries??

Yes, not all of them but most of them have lithium batteries. Expensive brands like Pride still offer lithium batteries as an option but that is to increase their profit above from anything else.

 

[dutchguylivingintheuk]

I suspect it's because they're more expensive, and it's more difficult to make a neat-looking one yourself with random online-auction parts because the parts would need to fit on/around the custom parts on most folding bikes, so it's beyond the people who don't care and gaffer tape whatever battery they can get onto a MTB frame.


Nothing that I know. Another thing that makes this "ban" even less enforceable than checking EAPC plates.

An 20 inch wheel bike conversion cost about the same as 26'' so it's not about money, probably more to do with a certain type of buyers, nobody is going to buy a foldable to do wheelies with, and mtb however whole different story.