The Electric Bike Boom: Are eBikes Really “Cheating”? 

I'm located 4 miles outside of a small community with no public transit. My ebike gives me the ability to commute that distance in a cheap and practical manner. It's not always about exercise. This is my only form of transportation. I can't afford a car, and even if I could then I still have a massive insurance payment.

Fun fact: if you run out of juice on the e bixi in montreal, you can press and hold the battery button to bypass the motor and make it slightly less hard to pedal. Saved my legs a few times!

My wife and I both have ebikes, and altogether they cost about $4000, or about the annual cost of running our car. They replace the need for a second car, reduce the use of our existing car, and save us a lot of money! My wife has a history of chronic fatigue, so being able to modulate the electric assist is a love saver for her.

This honestly sells me on ebikes. I've been hemming and hawing over whether I want one for months now. But everything you said is right: I do hate the hills on all my trips, I hate getting gross and sweaty on simple rides. Every ride I take is just a little too far for my normal bike. It makes every outing feel less like a trip and more like a journey, setting aside a fairly large chunk of my day to complete, and knowing I'll be tired by the end. Reducing any one of those problems would be a godsend, and it seems like ebikes reduce all these problems simultaneously.

Im a traditional "cyclist" who rides a bike for sport, but Im actually rooting for e-bikes to become popular because the more people adopt bikes for transportation, the better! Plus IMO, any cyclist who looks down on e-bike riders are just insecure people who feel personally attacked whenever someone on another bike passes them

This conversation about ebikes reminds me of one that I had with my dad about x-country ski areas. In Europe, ski trails frequently have small cafés next to them, which are very pleasant. That's never the case in the US. We seem to have this idea about the "purity" of exercise, that it must be hard and not very fun. Having strüdel in the middle of your ski is "impure." Using an ebike is "impure." Perhaps this is a sort of subconscious corrective mechanism that we employ to keep ourselves active because we know that we drive everywhere anyway.

I switched to an e-bike not long ago, and I think this misses the biggest reason to switch: they're just so much fun! People who are against them just haven't ridden them enough!

I (UK based) have an ebike (and a manual bike for leisure) and I use it as my default mode now over my car. The part I love most about it is the lack of sweat/heat build-up and you can dress for the destination. You can even raise or lower the assist level depending on how hot or cold you are!

I recently bought a pedal assist e-bike for my 12-13 mile (round trip) commute and I was concerned about how much it would take away from the exercise of it but was pleasantly surprised by how much effort it still required even with full assist. By modulating the assist level throughout the commute I can give myself more of a workout in flat areas while saving battery for the hills to keep from sweating too much on the way to work

I love to ride bikes for sport; I'll ride for an hour or two on a regular bike on a trail meant for recreation. However, even I love using ebikes for practical trips (my city has the same bikes and stations as Montréal!). I'm in the American South so it's HOT in the summer, and there are some killer hills here too, and I bike with my groceries, including heavy drinks. If even I can find a use for ebikes I'm 100% sure the vast majority of people will enjoy them more too and get more people biking. The hate for ebikes reminds me of people bragging about how miserable they are in college ("You went to bed at 2AM, well I did an all nighter!"); you're somehow a better/tougher person if you endure more hardship which is toxic imo.

e bikes might result in the same or more exercise overall, since they encourage cycling in the first place (since you know being sweaty/climbing hills won't be an issue). They also encourage longer trips so while you pedal less strenuously, it's for a longer duration.

Two things I'd add to this cost-benefit of e-bikes. First, e-bikes are useful at lowering the barrier to entry for active transport for people who tend to be limited more by physical ability than by cost, which generally means older people. My mom got into biking when I helped her get an e-bike for instance. And given e-bikes are generally a 1-time expense the set of folks in the US/Canada who are actually limited more by intimidation at the physical challenge of biking more than the financial challenge is the vast majority (since most of those people pay more for their cars every year than they'd pay for the bike several times over). Second, a rare but real risk of e-bikes is fires, particularly from poorly made batteries. This is an area the industry is having to deal with in the US at least and it doesn't help lovers of e-bikes (like myself) when we get overly defensive and try to deny or downplay the problem. E-bike fires cause externalities since fires can impact neighbors who never bought the bike or had any say in the level of safety of the batteries purchased. That brings with it, quite legitimate, calls for government scrutiny on them. As cyclists, we need to be calling for clear standards on safety to prevent backlash from gaining steam and communities just banning e-bikes outright from public spaces and housing. For most buyers however, using the batteries as instructed by the manufacturer and buying from solid brands (ex Bosch) does largely solve the fire potential.

A fun bit of math I think everyone should do with their local prices: how far can you go with $100 of energy in each of a gas car, an electric car, and an ebike? You can probably guess that the ebike goes the furthest, but it's shocking how much further it goes.

Another import point in favour of ebikes is one of mobility. Someone may have mobility issues that causes normal 100% manual biking to be possible, but not practical, even for shorter distances. Even an ebike allows them some increase in quality of life via the added mobility that the pedal assist provides, that's a wonderful thing.

I have a physical job, and sometimes I just don't have the energy at the end of the day to ride a manual bike home, that's what makes an ebike compelling for me

I have an acquaintance in Nantes that told me that eBikes are the gateway to non-electric bikes to several people (not just the elderly) after some time spent on an e-bike (a year or two). He also mentioned that people were easier convince to drop the car when using the eBikes than a regular bikes. I've had the privilege to see an enormous amount food and product delivery done by e-bike in Nantes (including a whole hotel's laundry put into a cargo) that severely reduce the amount of car and truck deliveries. I can only hopes that small and medium deliveries will make the shift in America (I already see it with some postage delivery, but nothing else in Montreal at the moment).

I have both in my collection (which is excessive and needs to be thinned out) and the difference is only comfort and ease on hills. It's a tool, like any other, and is used based on your needs. Studies have found that e-bike users get a less intense workout than riders on analog bikes, but on average tend to ride longer and more often, so the total exercise is about the same either way.

My parents go on vacation a lot and recently bought e-bikes for themselves because they are too old to pedal. I dont think that is bad

I work just as hard riding my e-bike as I would on a regular bike. I just go a lot faster. I lost over 60 pounds in the first year with it.

eBike throttle is super important if your city has no bike infrastructure. It allows me to go through busy intersections on the road without disrupting traffic. I can get to speed at a green light faster than cars.

The advantages of e-bikes can make the difference of riding a bike vs. driving a car. It can be worth it to get a decent work out, avoid traffic and the cost of gas, and enjoy a bike ride even if it takes slightly longer. Not to mention, not having to push a bike up a steep hill!

E bikes make me incredibly excited, because my city doesn't have the best transportation infrastructure, be it for bikes, cars or public transit, is very much full of hills, and a lot of the population is pretty poor. E bikes and especially cargo bikes could be an incredibly good alternative for cars to a lot of the population that leaves them without nearly as much debt. The hill situation is especially important because that's where a lot of the poorest communities are, so they'd benefit the most form having access to a cheaper form of transportation that doesn't become impractical when things get too inclined

Just to point out, with a Bixi membership, the cost of ebikes goes down to 10 cents a minute. Going to work on an ebike would take me 25 minutes (2.50$), which is cheaper than a bus/subway ticket, or about the same if we include the cost of the membership over many trips.

Thanks for all the great content. This was a well covered video and I absolutely think that the pedal assist bike is a fantastic idea. I think it entices alot of people who would otherwise not utilize bicycle transport. Personally as a conventional bike commuter I'd have no issue sharing the bike infrastructure with pedal assist bikes or even electric mopeds/motorcycles, scooters or any 2 wheel mobility device utilizing the separated bike lanes in my city provided they implemented a 20mph/30kmh speed limit I dont see any real increase in safety risk and I think seeing that two wheel transport being able to move efficiently past traffic would encourage more car users to adopt personal 2 wheel transport of some kind which I think is always a good thing. Thanks again I'm really enjoying this channel!

It sounds like the restrictions on ebikes are different between the US and Canada. In the US, the most common ebike is a "class 2," which provides both pedal-assist and a throttle. And class 2 bikes will only propel you up to a max of ~20 mph, so they're nowhere near a moped or motorcycle. I believe that electric vehicles that let you go faster are regulated like any other moped or motorcycle.

The e bixis are a fantastic transportation solution. I use the regular one 95% of the time, but every so often you're late or it's been a long day and it's amazing to have the e bike option with virtually none of the downsides that come with owning one.

I’ve been a commuter cyclist my entire life. I was recently priced out of my current apartment which was less then two miles from my job that I biked to every day in all weathers because I hate spending money on gas. I am now moving 22 miles away and three towns over from my job which when traffic is good takes 40 minutes to drive. I didn’t want to give up on being a commuter cyclist because of the move and there is no good public transportation options from what is a small (for now) farming town to the large city where everyone works. So I bought an ebike so I can still commute to work without paying for gas. While it will take me probably 1hr15min to travel that is worth it to me. It still gives me exercise and time to decompress before and after work. I’m still figuring out the safety route but I’m determined to make it happen. While this is the farthest I’ll have ever commuted for work by bike it’s not the farthest I’ve traveled by bike. I’m able to travel twice as fast as I use to on a conventional bike which is great because otherwise it would take me 2hr+ one way and that’s just not sustainable for a long term commuting options. Because of the distance and iffy bicycle infrastructure I’ll have to start driving when it’s wet out but if it’s just cold that’s no reason to not ride my new ebike. Most of the year it’s bone dry so this won’t be a problem. Oh and I love how pretty my new bike is too😁

I started riding e-bikes around 20 years ago, back when nobody had ever heard of them. Back then, I heard a lot of the "cheating" remarks. It came from people who never really considered bicycles as transportation, but as exercise machines. Fortunately, now that e-bikes have almost become the norm, that attitude has largely disappeared.

Over the last 25+ years I have managed to locate myself close enough to my place of work to commute between 2-5 days per week by bike during spring, fall and summer. When I was faced with a household challenge that meant adding another car, I gave up the car I had used to a family member and opted to convert an older bike to ebike using a kit. It has been incredible. I rode all last winter, (even when it hit -30C) over really hilly terrain. When I tried to ride all 5 workdays with my regular bike I felt it and even when I was in good shape, the hills really taxed me at the end of a long work day. Now my average speed is higher, I arrive without sweating and I can do this all week without feeling too burnt out. Yet, motor (only 250W) and the battery is tiny, I reused a 40 year old bike and feel I could do this until I'm 80! I do get lots of exercise, the pedal assist is just like a helpful push and takes the edge off steeper hills and allows me to recover quicker while maintaining a high average speed (30-32 kph) on the flats. It makes my 8.5km rural commute the highlights of my day. When I visit Montreal I use non-electric Bixis. But if I was slogging up side streets from Sherbrooke climbing to Summit Circle in Westmount or trying to climb Ave. Des pins or Cote des Neiges I would definitely try to get an ebike!

Montreal cyclist here!The only issue id say for the regular bixie bikes is the size and weight, it’s heavy compared to a regular bike and uphills are hell on earth.

Personally I see the e-bike more as a car replacement than a bike-replacement vehicle. If you are going to cycle anyway it's rarely worth the extra money to buy a fancy bike with electric assist. But for those who are on the edge about cycling for a certain journey, an e-bike might be a good reason to take the bike instead of the car. In the end it means fewer journeys by car and more by bike.

Not bad! I've had a RadCity for nearly three years. The most enjoyable aspect is pulling the attachments for my kids. I started with a two-child trailer, then a single trail-a-bike, and finally found a tandem trail-a-bike attachment. For my wants, it has been great! I could have another vehicle while keeping our family on a single car, so it helped me resist the trend of having two cars to allow both parents in the household to travel separately. I can take my kid to/from school by bike without becoming concerned about riding ability. I initially bought my oldest kid a bike at five years old, but it didn't turn out to be an attractive activity; however, having the trail-a-bike reduces the barrier and eliminates the fear while placing the burden of speed and balance on me. The tandem trail-a-bike has allowed me to include the two oldest kids (and incite envious rage in the youngest child) in the same way as the single trail-a-bike. It is more challenging to keep up speed and balance, but the motor assist provides good enough support. We've been out bike camping together with the tandem trail-a-bike as well, and I feel encouraged that I can share the joy of cycling with a lower barrier and at an earlier age. Topping it off, I've learned about and practiced bike maintenance, joined a local bike co-op and made donations, and improved my health. I even bought two steel bikes from the 90s to rehab with contemporary components with high hopes of doing some unassisted riding and cycle touring.

My girlfriend got one when we started pulling our daughter in the trailer and it is really useful for that. I am considering buying for me as well. Right now we live at a place that is rather flat, so the benefit of the electric motor is small (I go slightly above 25km/h anyways, so I do not get any time benefit). However, we will be moving soon and the area has a lot more hills and longer distances which tilt the board in favor of ebikes. Regarding the comparison with electric cars...ebikes just are much closer to the sweet spot. Being light and slow, it takes only a small battery to move it which makes it relatively cheap. A small battery can easily be taken out and charged in the apartment while an electric car mostly requires one to have dedicated infrastructure at home. And given that most people do not do any longer distance trips but most do longer drives, range limitations are far less pronounced

I adore my e-bike. It makes some physical issues I have less of a concern, which is a point I think your video could have discussed more. I find I replace car trips with it instead of bike trips. I was so sad when I had to store it for winter, but my city does an awful job of clearing ice from bike lanes and bike boulevard streets.

Great video, I agree with your points. Personally the biggest downside to me is the added complexity and failure modes. I can do all the maintenance & repairs on an acoustic bike myself. Even so, I’m getting an E-cargo bike soon.

As somewhat of an e-bike shill, I have a couple of comments: You've nailed the argument against analog bicycle puritans. No one should tell you that you *must* exercise more in your commute (running commutes haha), if that's part of your transportation goals, that's awesome! For me, my goal was to not drive an ICE vehicle while I take my 3 year old, plus bags, snacks, water, groceries, sometimes a scooter, etc. around town. This is simply not practical with an analog cargo bike and the hill grades in our city. I've already put 4000km's on ours. I also own a steel frame touring bike and use that when I want to huff and puff around with no one on the back :)

Just spent the weekend in NYC and the city is full of working class folks (usually food delivery) riding around on e-bikes to navigate the insane traffic. They were pretty ramshackle bikes; I could clearly see marks of DIY frame modifications (there are probably garages who specialize in modifying street bikes for those on a budget) and they were all using bog standard bafang motors and batteries. E bikes have a lot of purposes, and I think they're a net positive.

In Sweden, e-bikes can only assist, and only up to 25 kph. If no pedals, maximum speed is 20 kph. In both cases there's a 250W limit on motor. Of course most vehicles are illegal, both when it comes to speed and power.

Lol at “you’d get even more exercise if you just ran everywhere” 😂

Thank you so much. I'm glad you decided to make a video on this topic - actually, I was waiting for it :) I live in the Plateau and my work is on the other side of the mountain. While it is /possible/ to get there using a standard Bixi, I find I can arrive less sweaty with a "blue bixi" (as they have come to be known in Montreal). I also frequently factor in the relatively low cost of blue bixi when deciding whether to take STM, Communauto or Bixi (or a combination). For example, at $0.12/minute, a 25 minute Blue Bixi ride it is less than the cost of one STM fare... and more exercise!

I agree with everything except the criticism of ebikes with a throttle (at least those that abide by the US 20mph/32kph speed limit) - especially in the US where bike riders are often forced to use car lanes, it can be comforting to know that you can cycle nearly as fast as the cars on the road and won't be as concerned about cars roaring past you in dangerous overtakes because you're slowing them down. I'd also caution against an argument that says that if a mobility option doesn't provide exercise it doesn't belong in our cities - I'd say if it gets people out of cars into smaller, slower, cheaper vehicles, that's what we want (same argument with e-scooters). I'd instead advocate that all wheeled transport adopt a respectable speed limit depending on where they are traveling (say, 20mph in a "bicycle highway" or 5 mph on a relatively crowded sidewalk), since a road biker going 20mph is just as disruptive and dangerous in a collision as a throttle-powered ebiker going the same speed. I don't think our focus should be on whether or not they are self-propelled.

On the exercise note: I don't WANT to exercise when I'm getting groceries. I am disabled and it is hard enough to get around the store ordinarily. If I want to exercise, I will take my throttleable pedal assist to the goth bar and dance. Exercising on the way to everyday destinations just adds a bunch of uncertainty on whether I'll actually be able to do what I need to do when I get there. I refuse to get a car and ebikes are essentially the only way that's possible (as my city cut most of it's bus services because of COVID and the subsequent negligent homicide of everyone with the qualifications).

E-bikes are not cheating, certainly not pedelecs anyway. I personally choose to stick with a human-powered bike, but I'm not getting any younger, and if I reach a point where riding a regular bike isn't feasible, a pedelec will be in my future. It's a personal choice for anyone who uses one, and it sure beats a car!

These people who dislike e-bikes need to contemplate that there are people with pulmonary disabilities for whom a regular bike would be impossible. An e-bike would allow them to get out of their car and enjoy the outdoors without having to over exert themselves and be unable to breathe having to stop constantly to catch their breath. That's not just "old people" either.

I'm a 62 year old who works on my feet all day. The area in Toronto where I work is located atop the hilliest parts of the city. I purchased an ebike to commute to work and can't really explain the positive effect it has had on my life. My bike gets me to work as a hairdresser without being sweaty. My commute time cut from between 45 - 60 mins on transit to 14-20 mins. This really motivated me to ride through much of last winter. Winter riding isn't fun in minus 10⁰ however I preferred it to being smushed into streetcars. Having dealt with winter driving, the arrival of spring makes biking fun again. Now I can relax and take lengthier routes home. I believe if people tried ebikes just once, more folks would rent or buy them. The pressure and need for a more extensive bike infrastructure would become much more of a priority.

« Wheels let you coast through life » - Patrick, 2022

I wouldn't want to have to pedal my bike all the time, it would make it quite hard. I also want to go 15mph instead of struggling to go 4mph. If you the reader are upset over that, take a look at yourself here. I've tried going on 8 mile bike rides every day and it still doesnt stop being painful as soon as I get on a bike. So exercise isn't the solution, electric throttle is.

2:15 sneaky paige saunders

The only people I ever feel I'm competing against on a E-bike is other E-bikes. I often smile when someone overtakes me on one, only for me to end up overtaking them later down the line. That and cars and buses sometimes, there's just this good feeling when you bike past someone in a car or bike and are faster than them, then again there's also the bad feeling when it's raining or cold and those people in that same car or bus drive past you in their heated vehicle, it goes both ways.

I regularly commute about as far as other commenters here on my analogue bike and enjoy doing so. Ebikes are only "cheating" if you're in a race. I do encourage people to consider an analogue bike first, because the expense and maintenance requirements of an ebike can leave someone without transportation if it breaks and is harder to fix/replace

One other thought about e-bikes it that they are more complicated mechanically. I personally really like the simplicity of a bicycle and the possibility to do all my own maintenance. It's cool to me that because of it's simplicity, a bike can work a long time with very little maintenance! Of course, for some people that extra cost and complexity can be worth it because it enables them to use a bike when it would have been difficult otherwise.

Ebikes aren't "cheating", cars are. It's not about ebike versus regular bikes. Our car centric society has to change and modernize to be active transportation centric. We need to scale down our energy usage and improve quality of life by people-centric models, especially in downtowns and residential neighborhoods. Everything in these areas needs to slow down to walking and biking speeds. Enough of catering so much to the segment of citizens who choose to drive cars everywhere. It's not about getting rid of cars; it's about giving safe and convenient active transportation options to everyone.

good timing on this vid. I've been semi-seriously shopping around the last few weeks for an ebike

My issue with e bikes, mostly bixis, come from the fact that you can ride « effortlessly » at 30km/h. I have been riding my bike for 15yrs and have amassed a ton of riding experience, i am a relatively skilled rider. A lot of people who ride e bikes in the city today seems to have recently picked up cycling, they have no self balance, low spatial awareness, but are immediately riding at 30. It’s great to see new people riding bikes and i dont know how to fix this issue, but because of them I try to avoid cycling pathways in downtown montreal and busy area because i dont want to ride around these people.

Cheating applies to games & competitions. Thank you for coming to my TedTalk.

I live in the suburbs of Seattle. Seattle is a really hilly city and recently I went and rented a Lime e-bike and rode up some hills downtown to try it out and now I really want to buy one! They make it so much easier to get up Seattle's steep hills.

Nice vid! We have CitiBike bike share here in NYC, e-bikes are fantastic if you’re in a hurry or it’s summer and you have a suit on etc. It’s transport, not necessarily a workout.

Hating on Ebikes who can be rode without peddling is ableist and many people, like myself, need to have a reliable form of transportation to and from work that is over 45miles away. Have you ever tried peddling in 20degree weather with boots full of water and unable to move but because of the throttle your ebike keeps running and carries you home? Just because it has a throttle and doesn't require peddling does not mean it has no place in a bike path nor is it safer on the street. There are electric motorcycles that are better suited for the road, but most homebuilt Ebikes do not have the advanced electronics to have efficient peddle assist. DIY is good option and so long as individuals chose to equitably share the bike path with courtesy we should all be able to get where we are going.

I’d love to see you do a video highlighting the benefits that acoustic bicyclists and drivers see from E-bike riders. Every bike on the road is less cars on the road. And the people who choose e-bikes are likely the people who were driving but don’t have the level of fitness yet to ride an acoustic bike everywhere. So e-bikes lower the threshold for them and allow more people to enjoy alternative active transportation. This helps current bicyclists by having more people using the infrastructure, which in turn gives more ammunition for advocating for more or better infrastructure. Thus, saying people are cheating because they chose an e-bike is counterproductive and nonsensical. It’s a lot less lazy than driving a car and it actually helps to further our purpose. I don’t know why we have been trained so well to hate everyone who doesn’t do things exactly like we do.

For some, there's concern that ebikes allow people to ride at speeds once reserved for motorcycles but without the need for a motorcycle license (and all the safety training that that involves).

I live in the Ozarks and have plenty of hills to contend with. Even at 70 years of age I still love to ride my bike. It's very hard for me to pull the hills on my own now, so I got a fairly upscale, very powerful electric mountain bike. The nearest town is only 10 miles from me. I can go there, get what I want, put it in my bike's basket and bring it home. I love it, especially now that I had to sell my car, thanks to historic inflation levels. Aside from the electric assist, it's still just a bicycle. No driver's license, insurance or registration is necessary. Just ride like you are reasonably sane and no one will ever bother you.

I live in a rural area of Ireland about 4 miles from my nearest small town and shops. I have and need a car, but using an ordinary manual only hybrid bike with a variety of racks and bags for every occasion (I have been mistaken for a tourer) and two fairly large bike trailer's I can do nearly all of my local commuting, shopping and carrying of cargo without the car. Plus it's a whole lot more fun and exercise is an additional benefit although not the primary one for me. I've had everything from 70kg of shopping to a full sized lawnmower pulling behind me and much more. And I just wear ordinary clothes. I ride as I intend to arrive for whatever my purpose is. My work is 20km away and is usually very exhausting 13 hour night shifts. It takes me about an hour to cycle that distance but I only do it very occasionally for work because it's just too long and exhausting when I'm already tired and out on my feet after working one shift, never mind a week of them. I am now looking into getting an e-bike workhorse or an e-bike conversion to make that distance a real alternative by bike instead of the car. Being in Europe, speeds on e-bike's are limited to 25kmh or 15mph. This is really too slow because I can exceed that on the flat's and declines already. An extra 8kmh or 5mph would definitely be a real benefit for e-bike commuting. I drive that 20km in usually 18 minutes. I pedal it without a strong headwind in an hour. An e-bike even at just 25kmh would split that to around 40 minutes because it's the hills and winds that really slow me down and drain my energy. Add another 8 or maybe 10 kmh speed to an e-bike and that is a real commuting alternative to a car on open roads for 20km. Never mind in an urban area where speeds for cars are limited to 60-50kmh or 30kmh which is becoming more common plus congestion to slow it down even more. Oh, and I have had the roadie type in their lycra and their bikes without a rack, bag or even a mudguard disparaging my obviously very slow 20km in an hour. There's no point arguing with them. It's a completely different outlook and mindset.

An e-bike is a vehicle. I want to get from A to B quickly, and having fun on the way is a bonus. Taking the bike means not using a car while also getting exercise

If you do find yourself weighing in on the e-bike question for people who ask you, it behooves you to ride a bike with a torque-sensing motor controller. AFAIK, all the bike-share bikes use the much-lower-cost cadence-activated motor controllers, which simply turn the motor on or off based on pedal movement. The exact level of boost is often selectable by the rider, but it's a manual operation. Higher-end bikes use strain gauges on the pedal cranks to determine the exact amount of torque the rider is providing, and scale the motor boost accordingly. The user will still select a "level of boost", but in these systems, the boost is generally some fixed percentage of the rider's own torque. For example, Bosch offers four levels of boost: 50%, 120%, 190%, and 275% of whatever torque the rider is providing. IMHO, these kinds of controllers are much more intuitive and they feel way more like a regular bike. The cadence based systems always seem to be doing the opposite of whatever I want something like 80% of the time. If I want to gradually slow down, I'm still pedaling, but the motor is boosting at its full power setting. If I want the motor to work harder with me, I have to manually increase the boost, otherwise pedaling harder just means I'm doing more of the work percentage-wise than the motor is. With the torque-sensing controllers, the bike is always just following my lead, providing a much more natural feel to the riding experience. No one should ever give any but the most vague advice about e-bikes unless they have experienced the difference first-hand.

I've been a long-distance bike commuter since 2005. I have just started riding my 26 miles to the office on an e-bike and I love it. It does require a recharge, while I'm at the office and any extra errands mean that I need to turn down the assist level to preserve the battery. Otherwise, I have to pedal it unassisted for a few miles at the end of the day.

I now ride 24 miles per day on my mountain bike modded to electric with a kit. One day saves an entire gallon of gas not to mention wear and tear on my car. When I'm near people I slow down to bike speed. There is no way in hell I'd ride that much on a regular bike. I love it, its changed my commute into a great trip. Also as the battery starts dropping on the way home I am forced to get more and more of a workout, but I can arrive at work sweat free.

For me at least, e-bikes allowed me to get on two wheels much more often than if I only had a traditional bike. Because of that, I probably get more exercise with an e-bike than without one!

I kinda had the same shitty idea about ebikes in the past, thinking it was for old and/or rich and/or lazy people but changed my mind since then... I think what is crazy compared to that is how cars are normalized and (sadly) almost no one is mocking/pointing people who use them for all their mobility especially for short distances and/or in cities.... because that's only when we compare an ebike to a car that we realize where is the problematic mobility... like you said in the video, an ebike cost very little compared to a car even more when considered fuel/electricity and repairs, etc... and it spend 10x less energy for the same distance compare to an EV.... The real anomaly is using a car, all the rest is the future of mobility.

I have an electric Brompton with a throttle and it's great for urban biking. The small wheels are less efficient, but with the motor it does't matter. The city has many traffic lights, but with an ebike stopping for them isn't as annoying. I use my bike to explore new neighborhoods, so it's nice to be able to quickly get outside a 1-2 mile radius of my apartment. If I get tired of exploring it's much more fun to coast back than take the subway underground. Riding along narrow bridge bike lanes is also easier with an electric bike since they don't rock from pedaling. I actually prefer a gas moped for cargo though. One less thing to carry up the stairs / lock.

I read somewhere that people(who don't already ride) who buy e-bikes get more exercise than people who buy regular bikes because they ride them more often.

I guess the cargo does make sense. I had only seen hills as a reason to use the ebike (since it’s the feeling of safety, rather than effort that tends to be my worry on speed). I still don’t see a reason to get one in Ottawa (which is nice and flat), but if/when I move to Gothenburg (very hilly, with better paths) I’ll get one.

I live in a very hilly town in western Norway. We got a cheap (non-assisted) bike-share scheme, costing around USD 40 a year. Free use all year and plenty of bikes available. But this in the central areas, typically used for 1-4 km rides. I live downtown and often use these bikes. But a LOT of people living a bit further away use e-bikes for commuting instead of cars or public transport. A private car is very expensive to use because of toll roads, congestion charges and no free parking downtown. And public transport is often very cramped and slow during the rush hours. The e-bike has been a game changer for many people. The many hills are not a problem anymore. BTW: Canadian winters are harsh, but over here studded tires will handle the few days or weeks with snow and ice. Such tires are fitted to the shared bikes from november to march. Also, many commuters use studded tires during winter.

Good video. I'm enthusiastic about e-bikes getting more people onto two wheels. I don't ride them myself because they lack the delicious feel of a good bike and I don't need the assist. A few more disadvantages to e-bikes: - will go obsolete faster - more difficult to maintain - hassle of having to charge battery - expensive battery will have to be replaced after a few years - inexperienced riders may get in over their heads

I love the sign off, "Don't forget to bike and subscribe" 💚

Ebike allows me to ride the 27 km commute to work. There is no way I can do the same trip on a normal bike.

My first experience on an e-bike was several years ago doing a bicycle tour of San Francisco, and it was great - the tour was able to cover much more distance and visit more areas that would have been impractical to climb all the hills for on a regular bike. Since we were a small (and relatively young) group that day and were ahead of schedule stopping for lunch in Haight-Ashbury, we took our food to eat at Twin Peaks, which wasn't a scheduled part of the tour. I've tried Mobi's e-bikes in Vancouver a couple times now. The first, going into and across downtown didn't feel like it was worth the extra cost because other than the short period climbing Burrard Bridge and the first hill downtown I was often exceeding the 25km/hr limit where the assist cuts out. The second time I was going east along 10th, which is mostly a steady climb where I was below the limit and benefited from the assist for most of the trip, and it was nice to have spent less effort before meeting up with friends for some drinks (I took a regular Mobi for the trip home). For most trips, my own much lighter bike is usually going to be faster for not much more effort when I'm not worried about leaving my bike locked up at the destination, but for most people not racing to their destination the e-Mobis could be a great option (e.g. when walking is kinda far, but transit doesn't provide a direct route). I don't know how much of an issue e-bikes collecting in uphill areas is, but I think it would be interesting if bike shares offered riders a rebate on certain trips as an incentive to take electric bikes to docking stations where there is more demand for them (or for Mobi, one of the few stations with charging docks if the battery is low).

Bought an e-snow bike this winter complete with 5” studded tires. I ride twice as far and will ride on any trails; hills and all. It is fabulous to ride and so much fun.

6:02 of course e-bikes, even with a throttle belong in bike lanes and multi-use pathways. They're still limited to 20mph and the rider equally vulnerable to cars. Furthermore, the more demand for biking infrastructure from e-bikes the more incentivized cities will be to build it. E-Bikes, scooters, one wheels, traditional bicycles, I don't care. They all go about the same speed and take up about the same amount of space relative to cars, and they belong in biking infrastructure.

Outside my house is a grade on the road down to town which makes it annoyingly difficult to climb. Instead of walking a conventional bike up it, i can now press the "increase throttle" button and pedal away on what my feet see as a gentle slope. It's easier, better, and means i have to buy less food. What i like when cycling is the wind on my face, the high speeds, and the mobility. I don't want to sweat up hills nor let air resistance kill my speed.

I have COPD, bad knees and other health issues. I am able to ride 5 miles a day with my ebike. I also have 300' of elevation change in that 5 miles. Everyone I have talked to are riding longer with their ebike. I have a Hipeak Elias, it handles my weight and folds nicely into our Scamp trailer.

Great video! Thanks for posting. One advantage of a regular bike over an e-bike that has not been mentioned is the ability to load it onto public transit or a bike rack for a car. The added weight of an e-bike makes it hard to bring up and down stairs or an escalator to use on public transit. Moreover most bike racks for cars are not designed to accommodate the extra weight of an e-bike.

The only real problem I see with e-bikes is what I’d call the speed to fitness ratio. Here in Germany an e-bike with motor assist up to 25 kph is considered a regular bike, so allowed on bike paths/ lanes. 25-45 does exist, but they’re pretty pointless, since they’re basically like a moped, so you have to use the road. Of course all e-bikes go up to this exact limit. Now, 25 isn’t crazy fast. When I was fit, I’d usually be around 30 in inner city traffic. But in my experience, the average speed on a city bike lane is more around 15-20. It took me a few months of very regular biking to reach a point where I started being faster then average. This gave me time to get comfortable, to know where to overtake and how to spot dangerous situations. Me buying an e-bike now wouldn’t change much about my behavior, except my comfort. But people like me aren’t the target audience for e-bikes. The majority of e-bikes are bought by elderly people and/ or people who haven’t ridden a bike for a long time. 25 is quite fast if you’re not used to biking, especially in city traffic. Unsurprisingly accidents and fatalities involving e-bikes have been rapidly going up for years. I think the concept of e-biking is great. But why do these bikes need to go faster then an average bike? If the purpose is getting up a hill and to just have it easier, I’d say around 15-18 kph top speed would be much better. Sadly most bikes don’t even give you the option to lower the limit, but let’s be honest, few people have the self-reflection to do that anyways. I’m not sure I’d have it in 40 years. Sadly the regulations are in place and I don’t think they’ll change anytime soon. So for now, if you want to buy an e-bike and haven’t ridden a bike for a long time. Just take it slow and get used to it first.

Having a throttle does not make an ebike a moped, It is the power of the motor that separates an ebike from a moped. The issue is not about a throttle, the problem is people unlocking their ebike speed limits and/or using overpowered motors, but still riding as if it is an ebike, when legally it would be considered a moped style bike at that point.

Excellent video that addresses the common talking points. I just got my ebike, and as a year round cycle commuter I needed help on the windy days. I ride acoustic bikes for transport and have ridden my touring bike across Canada. I'm definitely not cheating, myself or anyone, by riding a pedal assist bike. Like everything else in life, it's a choice.

I had two really bad knees due to power lifting in my early life and arthritis in my knees. After a bunch of operations for tour molluscus in both knees I finally had one the total replacement done on my left knee. My old mountain bike I wasn't able to ride anymore because both of my knees were hurt real bad after riding for a long while. My e-bike gives me that freedom to either use the throttle or pedal to ride my bike. If my knee starts to bother me a little bit I could just hit throttle power and just continue on to my destination that way. June of this year I will have my right knee totally replaced and will be off for about 4 to 5 months before I'll be able to go back on my e-bike again. And it's great therapy for after the operation to ride that bike around and pedal with it and if my knee gets a little sore, I could just continue with the throttle.

I think one thing that drives the proliferation of e-bikes over regular bikes is simply that people overestimate how hard you have to work on a regular bike. There's this perception that you need to be very fit indeed to get up hills, and that even moderate distances will take a long time and leave you dripping with sweat. For most people, and in the typical Canadian climate, this really isn't the case. But it's a pervasive idea, and makes people more likely to start out with the "easier" e-bike instead when they can manage just fine with the cheaper option.

My number one pro for getting an ebike was so I could bike to work in summer and not be a sweaty tired mess as my shift started. Also all of downtown St Paul is on a hill so my whole ride home was uphill. I got a Lectric xp lite and it was cheaper than a nice regular bike at $800

I'm worried about people on "electric mopeds" ruining it for someone who wants a regular ebike with a top speed of 20 mph. Something is going to have to happen. I hope it's not overregulation for everybody!

Both me and my girlfriend have been reer ended by an idiot on an E-bike in Amsterdam, trying to overtake on the wrong side this year, a lot of people do not like E bikes on the cycle path over here. Especially young people ride very unresponsibly on those things.

Admittedly, it's probably just frequency bias, but for me the main concern isn't "cheating" so much as that ebikes allow inexperienced cyclists to go very fast before they have the experience to do so safely. I can often tell someone is riding an ebike before looking at the bike because they just look so unstable. It's probably a good problem to have lots of new and inexperienced people out riding bikes, especially if they would otherwise be driving cars, but I totally understand the angst of some experienced cyclists when they see novices wobbling along unsteadily at the speed of an experienced cyclist. We are conditioned to think that cycling is dangerous to begin with, so experiences like that hit us even harder. I'm sure eventually that will settle down as the market runs out of new adopters. In the meantime, I try to remember that riding in the bike path isn't actually a race and ebikes aren't cheating.

My wife and I are planning to get rid of our 2 cars and replace them with one bigger vehicle, probably a minivan (we have kids and dogs, so we need the space a larger vehicle provides for getting around our largely car dependent region). But for alternative transport when I don't need the larger vehicle (like I'm going to work or to the store or something else in town and I don't have to transport 5 people) I've been going back and forth between buying a moped or an ebike, I think I'm leaning toward an ebike for less maintenance and so I can use bike lanes and bike paths around town, it's more active than a moped, I can park it just about anywhere, and I feel like bikes in general have more cargo/trailer/other people transport options than mopeds do.

Part of the hate towards ebikes might also come from the type of biking culture in the US and Canada. It’s predominately centred around sports and recreation. E-bikes partially "take away" from those activities (though the popularity of electric MTBs shows this might not be the case). The vast majority of E bikes are addressing a type of biking that's not (yet) too common in the US.

People have no excuse for thinking only in terms of THEIR personal experience. Real humans have the mental power of abstraction & can think logically/logistically about what others must go through.

In Grandpa's days, he had to cycle to school uphill both ways, with harsh headwinds, through the snow, without those fancy new electrical assists.

7:47 It's not just about distance or hills. It's the "doorstep mile" too. Essentially e-bikes have a "lower barrier to entry" once bought when you're at home and considering a bike vs just driving or staying at home.

I tried recently and it did not feel like cheating at all. Especially in a town that is hilly. The boost was nice when taking off as well.

Another e-bixi advantage: my dad (70) can take the e-bike while I take the regular and so he does not get too tired.

Bonjour du Québec! J'ai assemblé moi-même mon vélo électrique. Très belle expérience. Depuis deux ans maintenant sans problème Je suis triste de ne pouvoir l'utiliser avant mai.

I have owned and E-bike for three years. Mine doesn't have a throttle. You have to pedal to make it go. The motor just gives you a power boost when you need or want it. Therefore, I don't believe it's cheating. I have other bikes in my fleet and none of them have motors. I have my e-bike set up as a cargo bike and use it to carry heavier loads. It also makes hills much easier. I strongly advise people to keep their regular bike if the buy an e-bike, though. e-bikes are heavier and have a limited range. They don't let you take them on busses like regular bikes. (at least in my area).When I want to go on a long ride I will usually go with my road, or touring/gravel bike for this reason. My E-bike has a maximum speed of 30kph. On flat ground I am actually faster on my road bike, but it is more work.

I sold my car and went completely e-bike last year and live in NC. I have had a great time and my quads have gotten huge with just pedaling it. It's the same as biking you just go further for the same amount of power. I personally try to do 15-20 miles a day. I've already saved around 9k with going completely e-bike and it's paid itself off multiple times. Any time I've needed a car, I simply rent one. I did a Pedego podcast interview if you're curious about how it's worked out. Riding Along with Autism-Piedmont Pedego is the title of the interview and I go pretty in depth about commuting with e-bikes.