how many people here don't actually own/drive a car or drive less these days?

[Alex728]

I've been curious about this, as although most people here do drive (and most report taking their e-bike back for maintenance ) I think there's at least two others, Straylight mentioned not owning a car and there was someone else..

and if you do (other than for e-bike maintenance), has owning an e-bike made you drive less? I'm not even thinking as much about the "eco-warrior" standpoint, but whether many of you find e-biking to be more enjoyable than driving and maybe even riding a normal push bike?

 

[flecc]

E-biking definitely meant me driving less since I used the bikes with and without trailers for everything from shopping to recycling and waste disposal, as wel, as leiusre trips.

At one time I did 4000 plus annually on the e-bikes and as little as 700 miles in the car. However, as I grow older, the weather gets colder, the geology changes making the hills steeper, so my car usage is increasing.

Still not serious though at less than 2000 miles total annually for two cars, small town car and larger open road car, but the e-bike mileage has dropped to about 1000 annually.

I still thoroughly enjoy driving.
.

 

[tonio]

I use my Wisper {with 2 sets of panniers} for shopping, picking up prescriptions, and basically anything within a 10 ml radius that i dont need to carry passengers to get done.Except when the weather is as bad as recently when March came in like a lion and went out like a complete psychopath Still its fine now and im looking forward to some better weather ebiking. Since discovering ebikes cars just dont impress me anymore though i use the car as family transport or long journeys. Now a decent electric car, with say 200ml range that would certainly appeal, but till that becomes a possibility the car is a moneybox with wheels. £1.20 a litre takes a lot of the pleasure out of motoring im afraid. Last night took a trip on my Wisper along with a friend,{15stones, not very fit} who bought a Cyclamatic Power Plus. Very impressed with the Cyclamatic, my mate has done 26mls and hasnt cutout yet,though i told him to ride it till flat for battery conditioning. I was riding the Wisper along at about 15mph with pedelec and occasional throttle but the Cyclamatic seemed the quicker bike.Thinner tyres needed for the Wisper perhaps instead of the Kenda 1.95s ?
O.k ive a busted back that was playing up and full panniers but that other bike seems great value at £429. Id like to see what a 36v 14a.h one could do.

 

[flecc]

I was riding the Wisper along at about 15mph with pedelec and occasional throttle but the Cyclamatic seemed the quicker bike.Thinner tyres needed for the Wisper perhaps instead of the Kenda 1.95s ?

The Wisper has positive 15 mph limiting, but from what I've heard of the Cyclamatic, it's probably voltage limited like my bike. In other words, it runs to the motor's natural maximum on the voltage available. That means it will be fastest when freshly charged and will slightly lose speed as the battery empties. My bike does 17 mph plus with the battery full, but by the time it's nearly empty it's 15 mph.
.

 

[tonio]

Thanks Flecc, the Cyclamatic assisted at 17m.p.h. So the Wisper needs to be deristricted or would thinner tyres make enough of a difference?

 

[flecc]

Thinner tyres won't allow the motor to drive beyond the limiting, just make it a tiny bit easier for you to pedal beyond. Not really worth it because the discomfort will rise quite a lot. Derestriction is the answer, you'll get 18 mph then if it's a 905se.
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[tonio]

Cheers thanks for your quick reply Flecc. Now away shopping in the car for Easter clothing bought yesterday that now doesnt fit? Dont we just love driving in rush hour traffic.

 

[Barnowl]

and if you do (other than for e-bike maintenance), has owning an e-bike made you drive less? I'm not even thinking as much about the "eco-warrior" standpoint, but whether many of you find e-biking to be more enjoyable than driving and maybe even riding a normal push bike?

I have a car. My wife has a car. I hire cars regularly as well. Owning an e-bike has made me drive less (about 1800 miles a year less). Yes I do find it far more enjoyable than driving or riding a normal push bike. Distance is key for me though. I use the bike for short local rides and rarely exceed an 18 mile return trip.
Excepting the cold rain and the occassional puncture e-biking has to be the most pleasurable form of local travel.

 

[fishingpaul]

I use my bike for work when it is not raining, and i do enjoy riding it more than i enjoy driving the car,i have two 2 year old twins so any solo leisure time to ride the bike is very limited at the moment.

 

[rog_london]

My job provides a company car, all expenses paid apart from the benefit tax. I swapped it for a van some years ago to avoid those taxes, and because my job mainly takes me into London it sits in the road for weeks at a time and never moves. I use public transport all the time - it's more convenient than driving.

Just occasionally I have to travel out rather than in - or I have to carry weighty items - and so I can't do without the van entirely. However, if I gave up working (unlikely) I can confidently say I would never drive a four-wheeled vehicle again. I've done too much of it in my life and it gives me no pleasure at all. Oh, I've never actually owned one - been driving company vehicles for the past 40-plus years.

For pleasure and leisure use - when the weather is a little more clement than it is at the moment - there's the motorbike and the e-bike. I think the e-bike does more miles than the motorbike - I certainly use it a good deal more.

I'm lucky - I live in a London borough so all public transport is effectively free. I still don't quite believe we get such an amazing concession, but I'm not complaining - oh noooo....

Neither are my employers!

I know not everyone is so favoured in that if you reside 'in the sticks' where you get two buses a week on market day you really can't do without a car. If you live and work anywhere around London though - who the hell wants to drive into that all-day traffic jam, pay the congestion charge, and try to park? Even when I had to buy tickets it was still a no-brainer.

Rog.

 

[Old Timer]

Well I`m almost retired. I have a car, my wife has a car and I have a van. I do go to adjacent villagers for post office stuff and alike on my E bike and try to get out every day on it.

Where as we would jump in one of the cars to go out for a change of air or just to get out for a while we now more often than not just go out for a ride on our e bikes. We are looking forward to the better weather to go further afield or take the folders to the coast. What we have noticed is that the fuel in our cars last just so much longer because they just don`t get used much. We still need cars because we live in a village where there are only a few buses per week and we have to go futher afield for main shopping and alike but I can see the day coming when we will own just one car for essentials and use the bikes to get a break from the house. You just see so much more of whats around you when out on your bike.

 

[nottyR6]

I have 3 bikes, a MTB, a racer and my Ezee. The Ezee gets used far more than the other bikes and, like other people I use it for local stuff >10 miles. Living in suburbia it is far more pleasurable than the car, I am always relaxed and I get a bit of exercise while I am at it. I am not a green freak but it does give me satisfaction knowing it is far better for the environment on the bike than in the car.

Two Vaude panniers can get a huge amount of stuff in and if I am not using them they click off in a second. My Ezee Cadence stops assisting at 18.5mph on the speedo, I dont know how fast that really is. 14ah battery means I rarely see it go from green to yellow on the meter but its good to know I have substantial reserves if necessary.

 

[Haku]

I have well over 20 cars... all radio controlled a fair proportion of them are vintage 80s Tamiya ones.

Don't have a 'real' car and have never owned one but I do have a driving license (passed first time with no faults) though I don't much like driving, it tends to stress me out even on short journeys when having to deal with traffic jams, finding somewhere to park without paying at a meter and people who don't indicate on roundabouts etc.

 

[Tex]

Due to distances and childrens school and sports runs, my household has 2 modest townie cars. That said I do about 1/2 of my local chores using the ebike and manage to ride to work 3 days out of 5. I also have a lovely UK manufactured "weekend" car: a Lotus Exige S2, but it's rarely driven.

 

[BertYardbrush]

Drive to work 3 days a week, bike to work 3 days a week - more often on the Dahon Cadenza unpowered but I use the Quando when it's windy or I'm knackered. It's also great for zipping round town and it's fun.

 

[Morag]

We are a 3 car household. I hardly use my car anymore and since I now have my wee bike I intend to do even more trips without my car to collect the Guinea pig veg and prescriptions etc. those I can get from the next village over

 

[jerrysimon]

I love having my EBrompton to cycle to work. Although not every day in the winter months I guess now it warmer I hope to use it most days.

Bike commute is 10.25 miles a day return across the city centre. Car is 20 miles return commute a day round the ring road (and sitting in traffic) and both journeys take about 30 mins, car longer if traffic hold ups.

I guess at the very best (cycling everyday with no holidays etc lol) thats saving 400 miles a month approaching 5K per year. I put about 10K on my car per year before I had my bike.

Regards

Jerry

 

[winterdog]

I tried driving took about 20 hours of lessons but didn't like it so i stopped, this makes my bike quite important to me.
my wife drives so that makes family stuff easier.

 

[Mike63]

Although we have a car I rarely, if ever, drive it.
It has been like that for the last 20 years, even before my knees went, forcing me to get an e bike some 18 months ago, I prefered to go most everywhere by mountain bike.

I am an amateur wildlife photographer and I have a motor camper which I just use to drive to sites close to zoos, bird of prey sanctuaries and other places of interest and once in the locality I use my bike to visit and explore the area.....If my wife accompanies me she is then forced onto public transport.

I hate the thought of driving in a busy suburb, I've reached the age where I need time to evaluate traffic information and other motorist's don't take kindly to my slowing down to decide which lane I need.
No problem on a bike...I can just stop to figure out the way...can't do that in a car ....LoL

.......apart from all that, when you get there in a car...you can't bloody park anywhere...

....Mike

 

[Caph]

We used to be a two car family. Both of us using our respective cars for commuting, but when mine died I tried biking because I only work 2 miles away even though I do come back every lunchtime to see to my cats. It lasted until summer came and I was getting way too hot and sweaty when I got back after lunch.

At that point I'd decided I was definitely getting another car and I was looking around at electric cars more out of interest than anything else when I happened across electric bikes. At that time I didn't know if they were a real option or a gimmick but I took a chance and I've never even considered going back to a car since.

Of course, we do still have my partner's car for long trips and weekly shopping so I'm not a total convert, but I'll regularly go shopping on my Alien bike with two large fitted panniers instead of using the car. In fact I hardly ever use the car now.

I wonder how many other people would switch if they knew about electric bikes?