- See also our cargo-bike web page
Our 2018 summer competition asked what had transformed your cycling life – little did we anticipate the incredible impact of e-bikes on the lives of 5 of the competition entrants. This led us to produce the factsheet below, Why E-bike, using their experiences as its basis.
2018: Spokes factsheet: Why e-bike? 2025 note: Whilst the personal experiences in this factsheet are still useful and informative, most of the contact information on the final page is now out of date.
Battery safety
2025: Spokes factsheet: Battery Safety Concerns about fires caused by lithium batteries have led to safety worries and restrictions by landlords and others on e-bike use or storage.
Our factsheet clarifies which e-bikes are safe to use and to store – basically those produced by reputable manufacturers and which have not been modified or damaged. Note – this is a new factsheet, pdf only, and may be modified further before a printed version is produced.
Public Liability Insurance
Although the electric bike regulations generally treat e-bikes in the same way as pedal cycles (eg use of footpaths and shared footways) they are “mechanically propelled vehicles” (mpv’s) and an e-cyclist could fall foul of regulations (eg regarding alcohol or other drugs) which apply to the use of any mpv. See the references on our legal questions page.
Note that most (but not all) house insurance policies exclude public liability cover for mpv’s, so if you wish to rely on a house policy for e-bike public liability cover, you must check this.
Other e-bike materials
- 2403 Sadly, despite great success over 6 years, the Energy Saving Trust loans/grants for e-bikes and cargo-bikes have been scrapped
- 1808 Transport Xtra article on e-bikes & cargo-bikes (transport professionals’ mag) Includes some limited evidence on health impacts of using ebike instead of non-e.
- 1809 10 Reasons for getting an e-bike, article at cyclescheme.co.uk