Why E-Bikes Over Cars?

          What if you could commute to and from work without using your car? Without having to get on crowded subways, streetcars or buses? What if you could commute to and from work and save time? This is becoming an affordable reality in many major cities across the globe. E-bike’s are the future of city commuting, traveling, and cruising. Imagine arriving to your workplace with little effort, and never breaking a sweat. This will be the new normal. Regardless of how often you ride your existing two-wheeler, let’s face it, automobiles are the most dependable, practical, and general mode of transportation currently available. A car can get you anywhere fast regardless of the weather, distance, or route.  But with the pile up of traffic congestion, and the overbearing amounts of pollution clogging the airwaves, maybe it’s time to reevaluate our relationship with our cars, and look to a brighter, greener future.

Cost Vs Cost
          When people look to purchase electric bikes, one of the most common reactions is, “I could lease a car for that price”. When comparing cars and e-bikes, the price of each is a factor to consider when deciding which to utilize. The typical cost of an e-bike is between $1500 - $2000. The bike, plus a high-end bike lock, and a helmet… You could be spending some cash. A mid-size automobile, on the other hand, might cost around $500 a month. One for the cars, 0 for the bikes. We get it. A good e-bike is pricey. But now it’s time to say goodbye to that 1 and 0 lead. Compared to a car, cyclists can save lots of money.  Think about it. The cost of keeping the battery charged on an e-bike is less than $0.50 per day, and there are no registration, insurance, or parking fees. E-bikes also eliminate the expense of lost time while stuck in traffic. What is the best deal you can pay for that freedom? Still not convinced? Let’s do the math.

One you’ve purchased your e-bike you’re looking at an annual fee of $782.50 which is mostly Seasonal maintenance assuming you’re bringing your bike in every 4 months (which you absolutely do not need to do. Most bike fixes you can easily do yourself with very little effort, skill, and cost). Meanwhile your average car costs $8’800 dollars. EVERY YEAR. Until your lease runs out, or you run it into the ground. We don’t even want to start talking about parking fees and the tickets you may get, which you won’t get with an e-bike. Cars 1 - E-Bikes 4. 

Traffic
          Canadians alone loose an average 85 hours a year due to traffic congestion, and in 2021, traffic cost Canadians roughly $3Billion. There’s an easy way to avoid this. On an E-bike you will never, ever, need to deal with heavy traffic. There is no need to be concerned about being late for appointments with pals, or an early start at work. Due to the constant electrical support and the choice of quicker routes, your trips from door to door are shortened. Motorbikes are similar to e-bikes, but they are still limited to the road network. With an electric bike, you can use all of the cycle facilities available. E-bikes can travel directly along the efficient cycle paths and escape tiresome traffic. In truth, most electric bikes make commuting much quicker than driving a car. Simply put, bikes take up less space on the road, which means existing road infrastructure can handle more cyclists, and reduced car traffic means faster commuting. We should almost give negative points for cars on this one but… Cars 1 - E-bikes 5

Weather
          Look, if you happen to live in Canada or somewhere cold, you probably own a warm MEC coat, have a pair of Payless Sorell Knockoffs, that toque your grandma knitted you and some Mittens. As every great Canuck would say - “You’re fine bud". People think that cycling in the snow isn’t a viable option. That’s because people think of thin carbon frames with their tires that squeak-yell at them just for being spun. Like your car, there are winter tires for some e-bikes. Say hello to Fat Tires. Kenda makes some great ones. Easily drift through and conquer any winter road or trail using them. Commuters swear by them. Your uber eats delivery man does too. I’m not going to lie and say I don’t get why you wouldn’t want to trek through a snowstorm to work. Cars are now constructed to have built in seat warmers, heating, hell even fancy ones have heating built into the steering wheel! But just… grow up? You’re fine for 10 minutes of your life. The seat warmers are pretty nice though… okay Cars 2 - E-bikes 5.5 I can’t deny winter commuting takes a moment to get used to. BUT! IT’S! DOABLE! (Hence the .5 point)

Health
          We’ll keep this segment short. The benefits of cycling for cardiovascular / general health are endless. A simple google search will give you a list longer than your average Costco bill. With the e-bikes power on, it’ll assist you to get from one place to another. Some motors are designed to only be engaged when peddling, others use a throttle system etc etc. If you happen to turn off your e-bikes motor, don’t forget it becomes / already is a bicycle. Want to reach that step goal? How about punish, annihilate and leave it in the dust? Cars can hold my bag of chips which is cool but I can also have chips at my work desk, or at home. E-bikes: A low impact cardiovascular activity that engages all of your muscles. Cars 2 - E-bikes 6.5 + a bag of chips

Range
          Cars win. PLEASE CONTINUE READING! E-bikes have gotten better. Average e-bike ranges have significantly improved over the years. Some can even travel upwards of 70km - 100km’s in range. Ion Lithium batteries and strong 500 watt motors have helped e-bikes to make this jump in improvement. No, I wouldn’t ride the majority of e-bikes from Toronto to Hamilton (yet), but I would absolutely, and have ridden an e-bike from The Beaches to Etobikocke and back on a single charge. Even if cars win this one, I don’t see the point of driving one for a simple errand that requires me to go from one end of toronto to the other. Cars 3 - E-bikes 7 (gave a .5 for improved range and practicality.)

Environmental friendliness
          Above all, E-bikes are the environmentally-friendly choice. The amount of pollution cars produce, even electric cars, is enormous. E-bikes not only save money but also reduce co2 emissions. This is more ecologically conscious. Another noticeable advantage is the compactness of e-bikes. You could line up a dozen e-bikes in the same parking space a single car would take. Parking spaces have huge environmental and financial impacts, especially in dense urban areas. The more bikes on the road, the fewer parking spots you'll need to construct. Cars 3 - E-bikes 8 

Safety
          This topic is tricky. Both are dangerous and safe in different ways. Statistically speaking E-bike riders are 26 - 48 times more likely than automobile drivers to be involved in an accident per kilometre. 64% of fatal car-bike collisions occur in urban ares. On the other hand, Bicycle Fatalities accounted for only 2.2 percent of all road deaths in a 2019 study. The remaining 49.2% were car drivers, 16.7% to passengers, 10.6% motorcyclists, and 17.8% to pedestrians. In short, stay alert, wear protective gear, and be cautious. Nobody wins a point here.

Fun
          There’s really no feeling like the rush of fresh air hitting your face on a sunny day by the water. You drift along the boardwalk with little care in the world. You take a deep breath in and remember everything’s going to be okay. You spot an ice cream truck. You stop, pick your fun flavour nobody else likes but you, and take a lovely moment in reminiscing about your first cone while staring at the waves caressing the shore. Mmmm Raspberry Mint… You hop back onto your e-bike and ride on to the park to meet friends for a picnic. You arrive in style as friends greet you with a cool drink and a snippet from life. As you park your bike and lay on the ground staring at the clouds, you’re reminded just how wonderful the world really is. How could it get any better? I’m not saying cars aren’t fun, but a car cannot create this sort of memory. The car can get you to those memories, but the car doesn’t give you the same sense of adventure or journey for something so familiar, and simple. The car can give other memories, but none like this.

Overview
          It’s time to consider the future of commuting and mobility. The world is progressively becoming more ecologically conscious. People want easy access, sustainability, and simplicity. E-bikes offer that solution. They don’t take up much space, they’re all around affordable, they’re ecologically friendly, they boost cardiovascular health, and can create some unforgettable memories. Car’s aren’t going anytime soon, but for short distances, running errands, visiting friends and family, e-mobility / e-bikes are the future. It’s no longer feasible or logical to continue relying on gas powered vehicles to transport us to simple to get to places. The future is electric, and we are here for it