Something new to watch out for! - suspiciously fast (motor-)bicycles

[ambodach]

I have a basic ebike which I sometimes use if I feel lazy or have a quick trip to a shop. The acceleration from a standing start is certainly impressive and could easily catch a novice ride unawares. My average speed generally is at least 5 or 6 mph faster than pedal power probably partly due to a higher speed on hills but I find myself putting in more effort and going much faster overall. Big wheels also help in comparison with my Brompton or Bike Friday.

[londoncommuter0000]

Cycling towards a familiar roundabout, check in my mirror for cars trying to exercise a last minute overtake when I'm suddenly buzzed by an electric bike clocking nearly 30mph.

I'm not sure where he came from (he possibly hopped off the adjacent cycle patch because he went back onto the cycle path after the roundabout) but I certainly didn't expect to have to be wary of such a beastie.

I believe you can fool the electric bike 15mph limit by simply telling the motor controller that your 29" wheel is actually 16", anyone else had this problem?

I encountered an e-bike on my commute up to London last year. Guy on the bike, headphones in, blissfully unaware of anything around him, as he sailed through red light after red light. I kid you not: he went through every single set of red lights, and the only time he slowed was when there was traffic coming perpendicular, and he would have been knocked off his bike if he hadn't slowed. But he didn't stop, and when the traffic cleared, he went on his way.

And of course, the laughable thing was that as we approached London Bridge, there I was - right behind him, and I had stopped at every light.

Is this a proposition that all e-bike riders are like that then?

No, not all.

Most.

There is something about a 'motorised' means of transportation which brings out the arrogant and selfish that is in all of us.

[Cugel]

I encountered an e-bike on my commute up to London last year. Guy on the bike, headphones in, blissfully unaware of anything around him, as he sailed through red light after red light. I kid you not: he went through every single set of red lights, and the only time he slowed was when there was traffic coming perpendicular, and he would have been knocked off his bike if he hadn't slowed. But he didn't stop, and when the traffic cleared, he went on his way.

And of course, the laughable thing was that as we approached London Bridge, there I was - right behind him, and I had stopped at every light.

Is this a proposition that all e-bike riders are like that then?

No, not all.

Most.

There is something about a 'motorised' means of transportation which brings out the arrogant and selfish that is in all of us.

I suppose London is a microcosm containing many of the poor behaviours found in humans when they're pressed together into large conurbations of struggling strivers. Elsewhere (NW England and West Wales) I see three main types of e-bike riders: roadies wanting to keep up with fitter folk in their club or group; old and/or unfit folk pootering about on commutes, shopping or just for leisure; a few MTBers who stick to the trails.

None of those behave as you describe. In general those on the roads are a bit slower and more careful than other cyclists, despite their motors. From your description, the law-breaking careless e-bike riders you encounter are merely having their usual careless bike riding slightly enhanced by a motor and would be just as careless on an ordinary bike. Perhaps their slightly increased pace merely makes you notice them? After all, if you catch them up, they're not likely to be speeders on e-modeds ..........?

City dwellers, eh!? :-_

****
Yesterday the ladywife et moi did 25 miles and 600M of climbing about the back lanes up & down the Teifi valley through Lampeter. She was on her 14kg e-bike and me on the 9.5kg winter bike. We averaged about 13mph. I can do the same circuit myself, by myself, just cruising, at about 16mph average. Neither of those averages requires traffic light jumping or other daft behaviours. (We go through one set of lights in Lampeter).

We saw one older couple during our ride, both on e-bikes, who were going a lot slower than us. They didn't look like traffic light jumpers either.

Cugel

[Gattonero]

Come to London and see how fast those things can go. It's crazy and dangerous.

[Oldjohnw]

Come to London and see how fast those things can go. It's crazy and dangerous.

A visit I avoid.

[Gattonero]

Come to London and see how fast those things can go. It's crazy and dangerous.

A visit I avoid.

For the the busy parts of town, I agree with you

[reohn2]

Come to London and see how fast those things can go. It's crazy and dangerous.

Is it so bad?
A genuine question which if it is,,why isn't anyone doing anything about it?

[Phil Fouracre]

Interesting! If they’re ‘crazy fast’ they’re probably illegal, they should be limited to 15.5 mph, that ain’t fast!

[mjr]

Interesting! If they’re ‘crazy fast’ they’re probably illegal, they should be limited to 15.5 mph, that ain’t fast!

Yep. I expect there will be a hullabaloo some time someone is killed by one of these modified not-quite-e-bikes but it hasn't happened yet. Are the outrage tabloids worried about alienating their e-bike-owning readers, perhaps?

[kwackers]

Interesting! If they’re ‘crazy fast’ they’re probably illegal, they should be limited to 15.5 mph, that ain’t fast!

There was the woman that was killed when she stepped out in front of one.

People made a huge fuss assuming that because it had been an e-bike it must have been travelling at silly speeds.
Yet when I watched the video the guy was rather obviously not going that fast at all.

Some folk simply see what they want to see.

[Cyril Haearn]

..
Yesterday the ladywife et moi did 25 miles and 600M of climbing about the back lanes up & down the Teifi valley through Lampeter. She was on her 14kg e-bike and me on the 9.5kg winter bike. We averaged about 13mph. I can do the same circuit myself, by myself, just cruising, at about 16mph average
..

E-bikes reduce speeds, Plus One!
1960 feet of climbing sounds better than 600 m, seems a lot

[Cugel]

..
Yesterday the ladywife et moi did 25 miles and 600M of climbing about the back lanes up & down the Teifi valley through Lampeter. She was on her 14kg e-bike and me on the 9.5kg winter bike. We averaged about 13mph. I can do the same circuit myself, by myself, just cruising, at about 16mph average
..

E-bikes reduce speeds, Plus One!
1960 feet of climbing sounds better than 600 m, seems a lot

The ladywife has not yet got the stamina for longer mileage/hours in the saddle, so we go very hilly routes to get the effort in for me. Finding hills in West Wales in not hard, since there is no flat!

Well, there's a little bit along the Afon Teifi from Lampeter to Tregarron and back on the other side. It undulates only a bit. But first there is a huge climb and descent via Llandrissi then another on the way back via Fferm Maestir. There are olenty of minor bumps too.

I plan for us to do a 2000M ascent-descent, 60 miler jaunt around Llyn Brianni by summer. This will empty her battery from full, so it will!

Cugel

[mattsccm]

Is there a touch of blindness here? People trying to split legal ebikes and others? Not a hope. If we are talking grannies commuting maybe but go to any mountain bike centre and you'll see something else. Ebikes are taking over the free ride/trail park side of cycling and the first thing that happens is that they are chipped. Of course that makes them illegal in several ways but who cares? The fuzz don't , the FC can't do a a blind thing about it and thus we are becoming surrounded by things that need all the legalities and attachments of a motorbike.
Of course we have lines dividing cycles from motorcycles but. No one is policing it so the line moves up. I feel that there has to be a limit somewhere.. After all the 100 mph emotorcycle exists. The time will come when a 3rd party is killed by a non legal ebike and then everything will hit the fan.

[foxyrider]

Is there a touch of blindness here? People trying to split legal ebikes and others? Not a hope. If we are talking grannies commuting maybe but go to any mountain bike centre and you'll see something else. Ebikes are taking over the free ride/trail park side of cycling and the first thing that happens is that they are chipped. Of course that makes them illegal in several ways but who cares? The fuzz don't , the FC can't do a a blind thing about it and thus we are becoming surrounded by things that need all the legalities and attachments of a motorbike.
Of course we have lines dividing cycles from motorcycles but. No one is policing it so the line moves up. I feel that there has to be a limit somewhere.. After all the 100 mph emotorcycle exists. The time will come when a 3rd party is killed by a non legal ebike and then everything will hit the fan.

Something can be done and in some cases already is. I have seen signs banning E bikes from forest trails both in the UK and abroad - quite simple to police.

[mjr]

Something can be done and in some cases already is. I have seen signs banning E bikes from forest trails both in the UK and abroad - quite simple to police.

Tablet computers with heat and magnetic sensors, backed up with X-ray machines in vans, like the UCI uses to ban e-bikes from racing, doesn't seem that simple to me!