[Dewey]

Paid internship to study Dockless Bikeshare.

[Dewey]

On Dec 5 the Advisory Neighborhood Commissions for Ward 2 met with representatives from DDoT and the 5 DoBi companies in a town hall. A Google site for the meeting is linked here and a list of questions they were asking of the DoBi companies was posted here. Fox5 News report on the town hall gave little information other than to say DDoT is interested in seeing how the DoBi bikes cope with winter and the demonstration will end in May, but Gear Prudence who attended reported a somewhat hostile reception from residents, audience support for JUMP’s U-Lock, and 56,000 DoBi rides in October 2017.

In other news DDoT and Howard U are advertizing a Paid internship to study Dockless Bikeshare.

[Dewey]

World Bank have set aside some dockless bikeshare parking space.

[Dewey]

WTOP report someone left a LimeBike on the platform at Minnesota Ave station Sunday evening and another man, now in custody, threw it onto the tracks where an orange line train ran over it damaging the train and for Metro to single track on that stretch for 4 hours.

[Dewey]

CaBi terms of use don’t permit alterations or additions to their bikes and the axle nuts are shrouded so can’t be made to tow a trailer but I’m unsure about the others. There could be a use case for cargo e-bikeshare if JUMP is successful.

[Dewey]

On the principle of “don’t ask, don’t get”, is it time to revisit asking for bike lanes on memorial bridge with the Park Service now they have been promised renovation funding?

[Dewey]

Article in the Post describes neighborhood advisory commissions in NW DC are unhappy and have called for an emergency meeting.

[Dewey]

Some of the comments on the ArlNow post on the survey are unreal.

[Dewey]

Yeah, I emailed the Arlington Trails link in the sticky at the top of this forum and got an auto-reply saying it would be forwarded on.

[Dewey]

The wind has blown down a tree over the Custis Trail just after N George Mason Dr, the tree is resting on the barrier wall over the trail and some branches are hanging down but it’s passable.

[Dewey]

@Harry Meatmotor 168299 wrote:

the NorthArl BMW crowd and their $5k e-bikes and instead, continue advocating for better infra?

Gillian leads family bike rides and invests time working to improve bicycle infrastructure for residents across Arlington county not just those who live north of route 50, I am grateful for all she and everyone who volunteers on local government bicycle advisory committees does for the local cycling community.

There’s a wide range of prices for motor kits and complete ebikes, I live in Arlington but earn well below the median, we have a 10 year old Subaru bought used last year. I got into ebikes because after 10 years of taking Metrorail I was out of shape and wanted the pedal assist to get up hills after work. Last fall I spent $1500 to convert a bicycle I already owned with a Class 1 pedelec motor kit after a few false starts trying out then returning different motors and batteries, if I’d waited until I learned more I could have done it now for $750, there are cheaper complete ebikes but I like my sturdy steel bike and while I can do some of the motor/electrical maintenance myself, I rely on Papillon for servicing the bicycle components. I joined WABA and took a City Cycling Class, which I needed because I’m slow but I’m grateful the instructor didn’t mind I was riding a pedelec and just asked me to turn off the motor during the drills, I’m riding a couple of times a week which for me is the most I’ve ridden in years, although I’m a bad weather wimp I like being above ground out in the fresh air, I think my bike is starting to forgive me for 21 years of mostly sitting in sheds, for me it’s all about the pedal assist and utility cycling – it’s been really useful to be able to tow my daughter to class, the library, church, shopping, run errands, and I appreciate being able to get a little exercise pedalling around getting stuff done. I charge the battery for 2-3 hours every 20 miles or so, I’m asking Santa for a spring tune up, I find running an ebike to be quite economical, and a life changer.

[Dewey]

@EasyRider 168227 wrote:

lol

The technology is really neat, I enjoyed learning about the sensors.

At the end of the day, these are unlicensed vehicles.

Yeah, at present even Class 1 pedelec riders need to sometimes fly under the radar so why some companies are pretty blatant about selling products like this that clearly fall outside legal ebike definitions doesn’t help. There’s some really helpful info on the web I used for DIY converting a pedal bicycle and learning about the electrical side, but there’s also a lot of chest thumping BS from a minority who want to F this up for everyone including those of us for whom pedal assist has a legitimate application. Respectfully I disagree with your conclusions, ebikes that fall below a state’s defined max power rating are not motor vehicles under the law, we need a classification system so we can prove compliance in the event of a liability case and so we can ride safely on bike infrastructure while following the golden rule/being a PAL.

[Dewey]

@EasyRider 168217 wrote:

I got the impression from NovaEBike’s post that ebikes that can be operated throttle only (no pedaling) max out at 20mph.

That is true for legit Class 2 and 3 ebikes, if it has a throttle it’s supposed to cut out at 20mph then on Class 3 ebikes the rider has to use pedal assist up to 28mph. But there are some exceptions, for some reason Prodecotech have a 28mph throttle and pedal assist ebike, the Outlaw 1200, that technically isn’t a Class 3 ebike because the throttle can be used up to the max speed. An unrestricted and illegal for street use ebike may use a throttle for when power exceeds the gearing/capacity for the rider to keep up with the motor, some such riders talk about ‘clown pedalling’ to trick a pedal cadence sensor into turning on the motor but could also be an anti-social slur on legal pedelec riders, like I said in a previous post we’re the Rodney Dangerfield of cyclists.

Here’s a description of some of the different types of pedal assist torque sensors, pedal cadence sensors might measure rotational speed or act as a simple power on/off switch if it detects the pedals turning, they vary significantly in price, a quality bottom bracket torque sensor might be $240 while a spring gauge on rear derailleur hanger torque sensor might cost only a few dollars but require a frame designed to use it, and a simple clip-on pedal cadence sensor might be $24, some quality systems like Bosch may use a combination of 2 or 3 types of sensors plus a wheel speed sensor all feeding into the controller’s software.

[Dewey]

@huskerdont 168196 wrote:

I have yet to see one good argument for allowing the more powerful eBikes on the trails (Class 3 or whatever they will be called.)

Legal Class 3 ebikes are sometimes called speed pedelecs, but concerns apply equally (more so) to unrestricted ebikes.

@hozn 168198 wrote:

Specialized Turbo…on these bikes it doesn’t require any elite level of fitness to maintain speeds comfortably north of 25mph.

Nice bike! I think there is a market among distance commuters for faster speed pedelecs but I would note the continued passing of 3-Class ebike legislation that legalizes Class 1 and 2 ebikes on trails from California in 2015 to 7 states by the end of this year with another 7 states now considering it, has encouraged bicycle and motor manufacturers to introduce more 20mph limited Class 1 pedelec models to the US market. This year Specialized introduced its first Class 1 pedelecs the Turbo Vado and Como where some of the 2.0 and 3.0 models use a detuned 250w version of the same Brose motor on the 350w Class 3 rated 3.0, 5.0 and 6.0 models, Giant have followed suit adding the Explore E+3/Liv Amiti-E+2 where its previous ebike line up was all Class 3, Trek are building on the Electra Townie Go! ebike line adding the Commute and Loft Class 1 models, Piaggio have brought over its European Wi-Bike, and the upcoming Yamaha Power Assist line of 4 models are all Class 1 pedelecs. I expect these companies looked at sales figures in countries where both 15mph and 28mph ebikes are legal and are betting more 20mph Class 1 pedelecs will be sold here.

[Dewey]

@hozn 168182 wrote:

Minor correction: I believe class 1 cannot have a throttle, right?

Correct, under the California classification system Class 1 ebikes are true pedelecs, no throttle. Class 2 have a throttle and may or may not have pedal assist. Both Class 1 and 2 are max speed limited to 20mph. Class 3 are also pedelecs, no throttle, but max speed is limited to 28mph. However as @NovaEbike pointed out, the real world performance of an ebike is determined by how much energy the battery-controller-motor system is designed to transfer to the bicycle’s drivetrain, and this varies considerably depending on battery voltage, quality of controller transistors, motor copper windings, location of motor in the wheel hub or in the bottom bracket, bicycle wheel size, etc.

Any ebike that can generate peak power exceeding a state’s defined motorized/power-assisted bicycle max power rating, that is not speed limited by the motor controller, that is capable of operating at speeds >30mph, regardless of whether or not it has a throttle or pedals, under most states motor vehicle codes is a motor vehicle the same as a moped or motorcycle subject to registration, insurance, and prohibited from riding on sidewalks, public trails, or bicycle infrastructure.

The word ebike is currently used by riders of both legally restricted electric motorized bicycles and unrestricted electric motorized bicycles, mopeds, and motorcycles. My understanding is this distinction was made so bicycle manufacturers could avoid needing to comply with NHTSA motorcycle safety standards – this rules out the legal use of most unrestricted electric motorized bicycles on street or public trails. High power ebikes may ride on private land with the owners permission and some hunters and off-road riders like to use them in place of ATV’s, snowmobiles, beach buggies, or pit bikes. Some electric moped and motorcycle manufacturers like Zero comply with NHTSA rules so they can put a VIN number on the frame and the rider may register and insure their ebike for street legal use on the road.

[Author]

Replies