I find it quite interesting, the questions I get asked about my bike by others considering buying one. The first is usually "how much was it ?" followed by "how far does it go ?", followed by a lot of negative head shaking. My first foray into e-bikes was many years ago. Home builds using Dawes Kingpins propelled by Atco 12 volt lawnmower power units, and a powered " pusher " driven trailer. The trailer utilised a modified lawn mower Peerless transaxle which worked well, and hauled many a load of fire wood over the years. To me, a bicycle is the ultimate form of personal transport, an e-bike takes things a step further, especially in urban areas where it bridges the gap between pedal power and petrol power. One thing that puzzles me is why the necessity for ever increasing techno babble, which invariably pushes up costs, and leads to reliability problems in later life. What is affordable to someone on a tight budget, and easily diagnosed when it goes wrong ? I bought my bike from a local dealer, who I trust, and has also taken the time to learn their product. A friend bought his bike online (for the sake of saving a few quid) and is already suffering problems, mainly as a result of buying from someone who "doesn't know what they're selling" and most of the problems being a result of poor or lack of PDI.
I regularly pass two industrial estates during rush hour periods, and notice many of the drivers stuck in gridlocked traffic stay locally, and the local council have provide genuine first-class cycle ways to both estate's. Perhaps one of the factors affecting the use of e-bikes could be the ability to purchase a second hand car for less than half the price of an e-bike. From many years experience in alternative power supplies, like e-bikes, which I put in the same category, I have learned that the product should be affordable to all, which unfortunately, perhaps by design, it is not.
