DFT consultation on increase of 250W limit to 500W

sjpt

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jun 8, 2018
3,880
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Winchester
Perhaps they should add an extra clause to be more (but not completely) inclusive.
As long as you can keep talking to your controller it is allowed to provide power to the motor.
Or a sensor on the rear rack; keep hitting it with your whip and power will be delivered.
 

saneagle

Esteemed Pedelecer
Oct 10, 2010
7,315
3,379
Telford
Perhaps they should add an extra clause to be more (but not completely) inclusive.
As long as you can keep talking to your controller it is allowed to provide power to the motor.
Or a sensor on the rear rack; keep hitting it with your whip and power will be delivered.
That's a good point. You can ride a horse on the road and on bridle pats, and you don't have to walk or run to get it to go. How much power does it have? How fast is it allowed to go? Can you ride one through a pedestrian precinct?
 

Benjahmin

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 10, 2014
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West Wales
Yet through it all is the elephant in the room contradiction of e-scooters. First there's the illegal to use on the road privately owned verses legal publicly hired thing. I'll just park that one !
One thing for sure is that in no way is a scooter electrically assisted - it is difinitlvely electrically powered. Therefore it is a motor vehicle. Yet we seem to be moving inexorably towards them being legally accepted. If they are accepted what precedent will this set for eapc throttles?
 
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flecc

Member
Oct 25, 2006
53,359
30,709
Yet through it all is the elephant in the room contradiction of e-scooters. First there's the illegal to use on the road privately owned verses legal publicly hired thing. I'll just park that one !
One thing for sure is that in no way is a scooter electrically assisted - it is difinitlvely electrically powered. Therefore it is a motor vehicle. Yet we seem to be moving inexorably towards them being legally accepted. If they are accepted what precedent will this set for eapc throttles?
We may end up with a back door ban. They were legal for a while in France, but now Paris where they were most used has totally banned them permanently. Our local authorities also have that power.
.
 

Wisper Bikes

Trade Member
Apr 11, 2007
6,297
2,261
69
Sevenoaks Kent
Sorry David, you can't get away with that, cycle is far too vague a generic term. We cycle all manner of things. My bin men were around earlier cycling, recycling my household waste.

The term EAPC says it all, Electric Assist Pedal Cycle, not Electric Assist Motor Cycle.
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Hi Tony!

Long time… I trust all is well.

I agree completely the term “cycle” is far too loose.

I have made the point that when a throttle is added to an EAPC, it is no longer an EAPC, it becomes a low powered electric moped. A fantastic bit of legislation allows the hybrid version to be ridden anywhere an EAPC is. The EAPC rules still apply though 250W nominal power, 15.5mph, only people over 14 may ride on the roads etc…

This concession makes EAPCs with throttles (Low Powered Electric Mopeds) 100% legitimate, this is not a loophole. Low Powered Electric Mopeds open the joys and benefits of “cycling” or to be more specific riding an EAPC to many, who without the use of a full throttle would not be able to enjoy “cycling” at all.

I should say that we have heard from many customers who have purchased a bicycle from Wisper because it has a throttle, who after a few months of riding have become fit enough not to use their throttle at all, often in a few short weeks. I simply don’t understand why anyone would object, surely this is a good thing?

All the best, David
 
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matthewslack

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 26, 2021
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I prefer 33,000 foot-pounds per minute.
 

matthewslack

Esteemed Pedelecer
Nov 26, 2021
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Continuous rated average electric horse power.

...I heard you can buy from Woosh above average rated electric horses.
I think it is the electric horse that is above average. The rating is standard.
 
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guerney

Esteemed Pedelecer
Sep 7, 2021
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What would it take to make a legalising retrofit kit for those with ebikes which currently have illegal throttles? A second PAS disc connected to a computer which limits/delimits and varies throttle votage signal between 0V-5V depending on whether the rider is pedalling or starting from a standstill, limiting throttle assist speed to 4mph when starting off, and allowing up to 15.5mph if pedalling is detected? The Oi Copper! ThrottleMeNot!™ is invented.
 
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saneagle

Esteemed Pedelecer
Oct 10, 2010
7,315
3,379
Telford
What would it take to make a legalising retrofit kit for those with ebikes which currently have illegal throttles? A second PAS disc connected to a computer which limits/delimits and varies throttle votage signal between 0V-5V depending on whether the rider is pedalling or starting from a standstill, limiting throttle assist speed to 4mph when starting off, and allowing up to 15.5mph if pedalling is detected? The Oi Copper! ThrottleMeNot!™ is invented.
Already done. He used a separate speed sensor because motors rarely had them in those days. You can pick up the speed signal from the white motor wire instead.

 

nigelbb

Esteemed Pedelecer
Sep 19, 2019
484
399
We may end up with a back door ban. They were legal for a while in France, but now Paris where they were most used has totally banned them permanently. Our local authorities also have that power.
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Our local authorities don't need to ban them as use of an e-scooter is already illegal except when renting in one of the 30 odd trial areas. It's enforcement by the police that is lacking.