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The government is forming a consultancy of which the Department of Transportation will be a member. Reports indicate that e-bike makers will be solicited for input as well. In addition to the current 250W limit, e-bikes in the U.K. does not permit e-bikes to be equipped with throttles. New legislation could potentially see wattage doubled and throttles normalized.
In a move that may seem surprising, the Bicycle Association, a U.K. e-bike trade group made up of suppliers and retailers, has previously lobbied against increasing the power in e-bikes. Their concern stemmed from a fear that more powerful e-bikes would result in the government reclassifying them as something other than bicycles. A change in the classification of e-bikes could see them required to be registered, carry insurance and banned from bike paths and the bike industry is concerned that reclassification could hurt further adoption of e-bikes.
So while the bike industry worries that more powerful e-bikes could result in new legal constraints that could hurt e-bike sales, the government worries that a 15.5 mph maximum assist speed may be an underwhelming speed to drivers who might be more interested in e-bikes … if only they went faster.
Notably absent from the current proposals is any reconsideration of that 15.5 mph maximum assist speed, though. Practically speaking, moving from a 250W nominal limit to 500W would result in e-bikes that simply accelerate more quickly. It would likely also result in an increased presence of e-bikes with hub motors. An e-bike with a 250W mid-drive motor is plenty powerful, but a 250W hub motor is decidedly underpowered. A jump to a maximum nominal rating of 500W would make hub motors more practical and could aid adoption of e-bikes by bringing more affordable e-bikes to the market in the U.K.
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Electric Bike Report’s take:
This legislation would be a big shift for the e-bike market in the U.K. To give readers a sense of how big a change this would be, most of the e-bikes we review here at Electric Bike Report are illegal in the U.K. Should they change which e-bikes can be sold to include those with 500W motors, the majority of what we review would still be off-limits.
We hope for the sake of consumers that they raise the allowable wattage as well as allow e-bikes to land with throttles. We also hope that the government reconsiders its 15.5 mph maximum assist speed. It’s easy to see why some people might be underwhelmed by being assisted to such a moderate pace. Raising the allowable wattage will open up the value-end of the market by making e-bikes with hub motors practical. Raising the speed limit could help e-bike adoption. Some people look at how fast their car goes vs. how fast 15.5 mph is, and then conclude they are better off continuing to drive.
More riders on e-bikes will help the world cut greenhouse gas emissions and reduce traffic congestion, helping make our cities more livable.
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