Guest post written by
Heather (@htstrategy) is an independent environmental strategy and design consultant.
Two increasingly popular phenomena – E-bikes and bikeshare systems – are combining to provide cities with new solutions to help alleviate transportation and pollution woes. Hundreds of millions of E-bikes and millions of bikeshare bicycles are now pedaling out across the globe , helping to reduce traffic jams and consumer costs.
Even months ago, E-bikes (bikes with electric assist) and bikeshare systems may have been foreign concepts, but now many will be familiar with these new technologies, given how fast they are spreading across the world’s crowded cities.
And, with transportation now the fastest growing source of global carbon dioxide emissions, support for the proliferation of accessible, low-carbon mobility options like E-bikes and bikeshare systems are crucial to international climate change action.
E-bike, Bikeshare Systems Rolling Out Worldwide
E-bikes are mounted with a small, rechargeable battery that helps riders travel faster and further, with speeds up to 28 miles per hour, going up to 60 miles per charge. Some bikes are configured to boost the rider’s pedaling power, while others use a throttle and require no pedaling, much like a scooter. E-bikes allow riders to cruise up steep hills as if they were flat, easily carry groceries or kids, and commute to work without breaking a sweat.
Given their attractiveness, E-bike use is soaring around the world. Navigant Research reports 35 million E-bikes were sold worldwide in 2017. E-bikes are especially popular in Asia with more than 200 million filling the streets in China, and in Europe with more than 500,000 bikes sold in Germany alone in 2015. Sales are rising in the United States, as bike models evolve from a specialty commuting or recreation device to a standard form that is accessible to all bike consumers.
The other rising trend is bikeshare systems, which allow users to rent bikes using a self-service kiosk, or increasingly on phone-based apps. “Smart bike” technology means bikes can be taken from one location and left in another, providing a convenient, cheap transit option for people, especially in dense cities. Bikeshare systems can be dock-based, where bikes are found and returned to stations where bikes are locked, or can be dockless, where the phone app informs the customer of the whereabouts of a bike and the bike can be left anywhere after use.
An estimated 1 million bikeshare bicycles were on the road worldwide at the end of 2015, with China home to three-quarters of that total - and this is even before the difficult-to-track dockless-bikshare trend hit the streets in 2017. The trend is also growing in the U.S. with more than 28 million trips taken in 2016 and 88 million trips taken since 2010.
Bikeshare systems are becoming a popular choice in cities because they offer freedom and speed that outcompete many other forms of transit, especially in increasingly congested cities. New York City’s Citi Bike, run by Motivate, is one of the most recognized. A recent study showed that over 50% of peak hour taxi trips would be faster by Citi Bikes, and congestion is making taxis ever slower. Bikeshare systems also connect riders with public transit, extending travel options – the U.S. Department of Transportation reports 86% of bikeshare stations are within one block of public transportation.