We're not the only ones.....
- Thread starter Fordulike
- Start date
At some point in the future, someone will be used to make an example of, following say an accident on an S-Pedelec.
I think the 15.5mph / 250 Watt EU law is about right.
The irony is that on shared pedestrian/cycle paths here in Bristol, I regularly come across lycra-clad men on racing bikes doing anything from 20-30mph, scaring the life out of pedestrians, their kids, and other cyclists, utterly reliant upon everyone else being much more sensible (well, less stupid) than them.
So the danger is certainly less the bicycle and more the pilot, though that's true with just about everything.
The irony is that on shared pedestrian/cycle paths here in Bristol, I regularly come across lycra-clad men on racing bikes doing anything from 20-30mph, scaring the life out of pedestrians, their kids, and other cyclists, utterly reliant upon everyone else being much more sensible (well, less stupid) than them.
So the danger is certainly less the bicycle and more the pilot, though that's true with just about everything.
I can rider a lot faster than 15.5mph on a normal bike with little effort but it requires a lot of me to get to 20mph on my Kalkhoff. That stinks of unfair I'm afraid.
I'm Bristol as well. As you know the 20mph limit is rolling out all over the place here which is great for normal cyclists as they can keep up with legal drivers but not for us pedelec'ers who get overtaken very slowly by law abiding 20mph drivers (if you can find one) then I think the situation has turned worse for us leccy bike riders.
Maybe a bit of an off the cuff remark but I believe a 20moh assist level would be a better and more harmonious limit.
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Certainly on a level surface, with normal wind-resistance it is fairly tough to get my Kalkhoff above about 19mph, so yeah... agreed there.
I don't find it much of an issue though most of the time, at least on cycle paths. The lycra-brigade bomb past me, but the majority still cycle at a similar or slightly slower pace.
On roads, the limit is only really a problem where I need to pull into a lane from the cycle lane (say when needing to make a right turn, or take the second or third exit at a roundabout). It means pulling out in front of cars and sharing the lane with them, and of course they are faster. I'll only do it when I have space behind, but some drivers (trying to be cautious, which I appreciate) hang back and actually prevent me from making that maneuver.
A bit off topic, but drivers overall tend to treat me pretty great. When I have any issues, it's usually with a cyclist (jumping lights, and everything else).
Many British e-bikers agree that 20 mph would be a better limit, but outside of the USA, 25 kph (15.5mph) has become a world standard now so is unlikely to ever change. This discrepancy arises from commonly practiced bike riding speeds, many countries such as the Netherlands for example riding much slower than the British do now.
The 25 kph limit originated in Japan, the EU adopted parts of the Japanese law including that limit and it's now the legal limit in China, Australia and a few other countries.
Countries once differed widely in their pedelec assist power limits, the UK and China for example originally both had it set at 12 mph, but the UK changed to 15 mph in the 1980s to roughly align with the EU. China only changed it's law from 12 mph to 15 mph very recently as part of adopting an EU law clone, but both those limits have always been ignored there.
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The limit is difficult to get right, as we're using cycle paths and roads.
On the road, 20mph would be safer as it would be easier to merge into a lane without fear of what's behind. But it is what it is.
The fact that the decision for a blanket 15.5mph limit spans so many differing territories with so many different road systems, vehicles and demands suggests that it's easier for the authorities to half think these things through than to specify limits based on local specifics. I don't think a one size fits all limit is an example of anything other than not thinking these things through.
I agree we're probably stuck with these rules now which is a shame and maybe one of the reason that the adjustments made with dongles etc are made knowingly by us lot are happening. I know the dongle attitude is a.crowd divider here but I'm starting to warm to the idea myself. There are pitfalls if something goes wrong but personally the idea of keeping up with the traffic flow is appealing,
The main reason I wouldn't do this, is because of how this will affect any scenario if/when (it will probably happen some day) I'm in an accident.
If found to have been breaking the law it could land you in serious trouble.
Yep. I agree. That said, unless you've been disabled in an accident ripping the dongle off is a 10 second job.
It's just a shame that some of us need to even think about this stuff. Remember though that Bristol is forcing a 20mph limit to roads I've driven on for over thirty years as a car driver at 30mph so maybe flexibility is actually a reality.
My London Borough of Croydon is also introducing 20 mph limits in residential roads and currently intend them to cover the whole north of the borough soon, an area of some 200,000 residents. They are doing it by consultation.
Few people are aware of the Street Playgrounds Act, 1938 which permits the change of such as some residential streets into play areas in which traffic is confined to residents and their visitors and restrained to very low speeds compatible with children's safety.
Residents of a suitable street can apply to their local authority for their street to be one such area. By 1963 there were some 750 streets designated and I know more have been created since.
So there is flexibility once all the possibilities are explored. If we can't have more pedelec speed, we can sometimes get traffic down to our speeds.
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I don't wish to poke the bear, but I did find one of the Endless Sphere posts intriguing. Has anyone seen the episode they are on about?
" I watched the gadgit show, where ebikes were trialed around the london city center. One of the presenters was riding about on an illegal bike. On national tv. Nobody cares "
" I watched the gadgit show, where ebikes were trialed around the london city center. One of the presenters was riding about on an illegal bike. On national tv. Nobody cares "
That was on a test/race track not on the roads of London in 2014. D8veh's Boardman Oxydrive kitted bike trounced a branded production bike, though the contest was a tad unfair one was limited to 15.5mph and the other was able to be unrestricted.
Not just illegal e-bikes. They've also ridden at least two illegal self balancing machines on the London roads and pavements, one a monowheel, and ridden a stand-on motor only scooter-like trike.
It's obvious they have no idea what the law is.
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