e-bikes legal in DC?

[mello yello]

@americancyclo 141913 wrote:

and“(d) A motor incapable ofpropelling the device at a speedof more than twentymiles per hour (20 mph) on levelground.

This is why the Riide bikes are limited at 20mph. Trying to pedal faster the electric motor acts against the user.

[sjclaeys]

@83(b) 142021 wrote:

Yes, those are totally equivalent. Except for maybe the noise pollution, and the riding with a suicidal disregard for safety that’s greater even than whats often attributed to cyclists, and the using them as getaway vehicles (given MPD’s no chase policy), and … something else … Oh! right, the maiming and killing people pretty frequently.

Well, I’ve seen e-bikes ridden with a suicidal disregard for safety that’s greater even than whats often attributed to cyclists.

[83b]

@sjclaeys 142034 wrote:

Well, I’ve seen e-bikes ridden with a suicidal disregard for safety that’s greater even than whats often attributed to cyclists.

Yes, and we’ve also all seen regular cyclists do the same. Idiots abound! That’s not really the point is it? I remain incredulous that anyone who lives in a neighborhood regularly terrorized by dirt bikes would compare them to middle-aged office drones just trying to get to work without sweating a ton.

[rcannon100]

Well – not to get into this – but there are two points:

* Bikes are limited by the power of their engine. Generally inexperienced cyclists cannot exceed say 13 or 14 mph because they just dont have the engine for it. But with an ebike, an inexperienced rider can go much faster than their experience would indicate is prudent.

* And related, those speeds on an ebike can get significantly higher – into the 20+ mph range.

That is one of the differences between motorized and non-motorized vehicles. When you are the engine, you are your own limit to “suicidal disregard for safety”

Otherwise, full concurrence. Idiots abound.

[83b]

@rcannon100 142043 wrote:

Bikes are limited by the power of their engine. Generally inexperienced cyclists cannot exceed say 13 or 14 mph because they just dont have the engine for it. But with an ebike, an inexperienced rider can go much faster than their experience would indicate is prudent.

Full agreement here. I came to riding an ebike with a lot of regular cycling experience. I think that for most others it would be a great thing if the shops that sell ebikes had them governed to 15mph initially and only lift the limit to 20mph if the customer can demonstrate appropriate skills (preferably after a few months of regular riding, so that they’ve developed some situational awareness about how our crowded trails function).

[lordofthemark]

I cannot say I have ever seen dirt bikes ridden on the street in a way that did not appear to be in disregard for other road users (and anyone within earshot). Just my experience.

[sjclaeys]

@83(b) 142042 wrote:

Yes, and we’ve also all seen regular cyclists do the same. Idiots abound! That’s not really the point is it? I remain incredulous that anyone who lives in a neighborhood regularly terrorized by dirt bikes would compare them to middle-aged office drones just trying to get to work without sweating a ton.

I’d like to see some of those middle-aged office drones on e-bikes let up on their speed just a tad, even if it means that they may have to sweat a little bit more. There is also the option of allowing a little more time to get to work, which all of us slower folk must do.

[sjclaeys]

@rcannon100 142043 wrote:

Well – not to get into this – but there are two points:

* Bikes are limited by the power of their engine. Generally inexperienced cyclists cannot exceed say 13 or 14 mph because they just dont have the engine for it. But with an ebike, an inexperienced rider can go much faster than their experience would indicate is prudent.

* And related, those speeds on an ebike can get significantly higher – into the 20+ mph range.

That is one of the differences between motorized and non-motorized vehicles. When you are the engine, you are your own limit to “suicidal disregard for safety”

Otherwise, full concurrence. Idiots abound.

I would also add that e-bikes also tend to have much more mass than human-powered bicycles, so there is a greater risk from e-bikes due to the combination of higher speed and greater mass.

[TwoWheelsDC]

@UnknownCyclist 142013 wrote:

Gee, I feel the same way about dirt bikes.

Dirt bikes are banned outright in DC, e-bikes are not. In fact, an e-bike with a 20mph cutoff would be perfectly legal on bike paths and bike lanes (at least based on my reading of the statute).

[TwoWheelsDC]

@sjclaeys 142054 wrote:

I would also add that e-bikes also tend to have much more mass than human-powered bicycles, so there is a greater risk from e-bikes due to the combination of higher speed and greater mass.

By that logic though, you’d have to ban fat cyclists from trails and bike lanes. As a proportion of overall mass, an e-assist is basically negligible and rider mass will be play a much bigger role in the force of a crash at a given speed.

[rcannon100]

Could we then agree to ban e-fat-bikes?? Cause there is one that flies over the 14th St Bridge.

[Steve O]

BTW – This has all been discussed before
http://bikearlingtonforum.com/showthread.php?8207-Dang-electric-motorcycles

[sjclaeys]

@TwoWheelsDC 142058 wrote:

By that logic though, you’d have to ban fat cyclists from trails and bike lanes. As a proportion of overall mass, an e-assist is basically negligible and rider mass will be play a much bigger role in the force of a crash at a given speed.

You’re forgetting that there is the factor of e-bikes’ higher speed, which most likely would be higher than that of an over-weight rider on a regular bicycle. I am not 100% sure, but I think that the force of impact is based on the velocity of the object squared, so an increase in a object’s speed has a significantly greater effect on the force of the impact than the mass of the object. But also, many of the e-bikes I see are the larger mountain bike and cargo types that easily are more than 60 lbs. not counting rider and cargo.

[dasgeh]

@rcannon100 142043 wrote:

That is one of the differences between motorized and non-motorized vehicles. When you are the engine, you are your own limit to “suicidal disregard for safety”

Have you seen a bike on a downhill? Plenty of out of shape newbies can and do exceed 20mph on the downhills of the Custis. In fact, a road bike on a downhill will be faster than most ebikes because most ebikes have fatter tires so more rolling resistance.

Ebikes, like all* bikes, put the rider in a position of being exposed and vulnerable, and most people realize that they’re vulnerable and act accordingly. There are a few that don’t. The motor on the bike doesn’t change that.

*no elf-talk

[americancyclo]

@dasgeh 142069 wrote:

In fact, a road bike on a downhill will be faster than most ebikes because most ebikes have fatter tires so more rolling resistance.

But fatter tires have LESS rolling resistance. at the same pressure

http://velonews.competitor.com/2012/03/bikes-and-tech/technical-faq/tech-faq-seriously-wider-tires-have-lower-rolling-resistance-than-their-narrower-brethren_209268

[Author]

Posts