Ok, so yes, I agree completely that older riders are more susceptible to crashing on an e-bike. We have enough evidence from the Netherlands to know that this isn’t about infrastructure.
However, the article is a bit of a mess because it mentions rental e-bikes and other classes of bikes that you’d never see in a rental program.
Now, rental bikes, e-bike, and e-scooters come with an additional challenge: they aren’t set up to rider, and have a different “feel” to what the rider might experience with their own bike.
When I read "‘I didn’t ride the bike that fast but I couldn’t stop it from hitting the pole.’ Or they hit a car.”, to me, it’s entirely possible that these rental bikes (which are much heavier than most standard bikes/e-bikes), don’t have the same brake system, or the rider isn’t used to the brake feel of that bike.
I’m an experienced cyclist and e-scooter rider, but rentals feel completely foreign. They don’t react like mine, don’t stop like mine, don’t accelerate like mine, they don’t roll like mine, etc.
It’s no wonder that the risk goes way up in rental riders who are also not experienced and/or elderly.
Around where I live, I see a lot of older folks on e-bikes. This is a GOOD THING as it gets them out, gives them independence, and enables them to explore their community with ease.
However, I’d say that a good majority are riding fat tire, folding e-bikes, which handle differently to a standard-sized urban bike (and they are significantly heavier!). The learning curve and experience needed to ride them is a bit higher because of that.
One other factor for rentals’ brakes: they could need to be replaced due to wear from heavy usage. Even with experience on the same type of rental bike doesn’t mean much if their brakes are all at different wear levels.
Yes, and also, I’ve heard of brakes on rental e-scooters being vandalized (cables cut), which result in crashes. It’s entirely possible that sabotage also happens on rental e-bikes, but who knows how many crashes are a result of that.
I also wonder if it’s even possible for people to determine how fast they are going. Is there a speedometer? If the thing is motorized, then there should be one!
I actually don’t remember if there’s a speedometer built into the handlebar, or if it tells you through the app (phone mount built-in).
But I don’t think it’s so much not knowing the speed, but people not realizing that their effort is basically amplified. So it may feel like you are not putting in a lot of effort (i.e “I’m going slow”), but the scooter or bike is putting out a good amount (i.e. you’re actually going faster than you think!).
And for those who don’t know, an e-bike may have a 250 - 1000+ watt motor. An average cyclist may only be able to put out a sustained 100-200w, so they actually get the power of a much stronger rider.
And for those who don’t know, an e-bike may have a 250 - 1000+ watt motor.
True, but as far as I know, no city-approved rental company is renting bikes with anything greater than 750watts, as it would be a major liability, especially when the rental companies don’t offer helmets.
If anyone’s city is offering e-bikes with motors over750 watts, I would be very interested to hear about it.
Ok, so yes, I agree completely that older riders are more susceptible to crashing on an e-bike. We have enough evidence from the Netherlands to know that this isn’t about infrastructure.
However, the article is a bit of a mess because it mentions rental e-bikes and other classes of bikes that you’d never see in a rental program.
Now, rental bikes, e-bike, and e-scooters come with an additional challenge: they aren’t set up to rider, and have a different “feel” to what the rider might experience with their own bike.
When I read "‘I didn’t ride the bike that fast but I couldn’t stop it from hitting the pole.’ Or they hit a car.”, to me, it’s entirely possible that these rental bikes (which are much heavier than most standard bikes/e-bikes), don’t have the same brake system, or the rider isn’t used to the brake feel of that bike.
I’m an experienced cyclist and e-scooter rider, but rentals feel completely foreign. They don’t react like mine, don’t stop like mine, don’t accelerate like mine, they don’t roll like mine, etc.
It’s no wonder that the risk goes way up in rental riders who are also not experienced and/or elderly.
Around where I live, I see a lot of older folks on e-bikes. This is a GOOD THING as it gets them out, gives them independence, and enables them to explore their community with ease.
However, I’d say that a good majority are riding fat tire, folding e-bikes, which handle differently to a standard-sized urban bike (and they are significantly heavier!). The learning curve and experience needed to ride them is a bit higher because of that.
One other factor for rentals’ brakes: they could need to be replaced due to wear from heavy usage. Even with experience on the same type of rental bike doesn’t mean much if their brakes are all at different wear levels.
Yes, and also, I’ve heard of brakes on rental e-scooters being vandalized (cables cut), which result in crashes. It’s entirely possible that sabotage also happens on rental e-bikes, but who knows how many crashes are a result of that.
My first thought was, who rides anything without testing the brakes being the first thing you do. But then I thought some more.
I also wonder if it’s even possible for people to determine how fast they are going. Is there a speedometer? If the thing is motorized, then there should be one!
I actually don’t remember if there’s a speedometer built into the handlebar, or if it tells you through the app (phone mount built-in).
But I don’t think it’s so much not knowing the speed, but people not realizing that their effort is basically amplified. So it may feel like you are not putting in a lot of effort (i.e “I’m going slow”), but the scooter or bike is putting out a good amount (i.e. you’re actually going faster than you think!).
And for those who don’t know, an e-bike may have a 250 - 1000+ watt motor. An average cyclist may only be able to put out a sustained 100-200w, so they actually get the power of a much stronger rider.
True, but as far as I know, no city-approved rental company is renting bikes with anything greater than 750watts, as it would be a major liability, especially when the rental companies don’t offer helmets.
If anyone’s city is offering e-bikes with motors over750 watts, I would be very interested to hear about it.
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