# The Urban Ride of the Future Meets the E-Bike

- Link: https://greenlivingguy.com/2011/05/the-urban-ride-of-the-future-meets-the-e-bike/
- Published: 2011-05-16T18:13:49-04:00
- Author: greenlivingguy

Electric Vehicles like the Chevy Volt and Nissan Leaf are steadily moving towards
wider adoption in the U.S.

**_But how do carless urbanites get in on the EV action? – _**electric bikes:

 **“A Sense of Lightness”**

E-bikes come in different varieties but share common characteristics: unlike a motor
scooter, they can be powered by pedals alone. A mounted battery pack, with a power
output starting at 250 watts – about one-third of 1 horsepower – can also provide
power to a motor in the rear wheel.

The motor can either assist pedaling, or, in some models, provide enough power to
move the bike without any effort from the rider. A simple throttle switch on the
handlebars controls the power. To qualify as e-bikes under federal law, they must
not have more than 1,000 watts of power or be able to exceed 20 miles per hour with
motor power.

“There’s a sense, when you’re riding down the road, of lightness,” said Bert Cebular,
the owner of [NYCeWheels](https://web.archive.org/web/20181023060527/https://www.nycewheels.com/electric-bikes/)
in Manhattan, and a pioneer in the U.S. e-bike market, as he steered a model through
his narrow storefront on the Upper East Side where he’s been spreading the e-bike
gospel since 2001.

**On the road to acceptance**

E-bike sales in the U.S. have been growing at a 21 percent annual clip – albeit 
from a modest base – and could reach 785,000 a year by 2016, according to Pike Research,
a clean energy market research firm.

“In the U.S., bicycles, in general, are not considered a viable form of transportation,”
said Dave Hurst, a senior analyst with Pike Research who has studied the e-bike 
market. The same is true of their electric counterparts, he added. Still, Hurst 
said, the e-bike is winning an increasing number of converts among people who wouldn’t
otherwise be on a bike, particularly in cities that have added bike lanes.

Deborah Fortier, a 60-year-old piano teacher who lives on Manhattan’s Upper West
Side, is one such convert. She had been riding a traditional two-wheeler to her 
lessons but she was arriving “tired and sweaty.” After she got her e-bike three 
years ago, Fortier started scheduling her lessons 15 minutes apart and arriving 
fresh. Now she is an e-bike evangelist and wants more Baby Boomers to abandon their
cars for e-bikes.

“That would get more people thinking about going out and putting a basket on their
bikes and doing shopping,” she said. “You get a whole wonderful new sense of yourself
and the city.”

**_Source: Build Your Own Electic Bike by [McGraw-Hill](https://greenlivingguy.com/2011/08/mcgraw-hill-gets-solar-power-for-their-home-in-new-jersey/)
Professional and Txnologist_**

More on Electric Vehicles From The Green Living Guy

**Build Your Own Electric Vehicle**

Planet Green Post I wrote: Five Reasons Why The Nissan Leaf’s Price will make it
work!

Why the Lincoln MKZ Hybrid is More EV Than Hybrid?

**More from The Green Living Guy:**

 1. Build Your Own Electric Vehicle by Seth Leitman and Bob Brandt

2. Build Your Own Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle by Seth Leitman

3. Build Your Own Electric Motorcycle by Carl Vogel

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 greenlivingguy

 The Green Living Guy, Seth Leitman is an independent power producer, a green living
expert, and Editor of the McGraw-Hill, TAB Green Guru Guides. Seth is also an Author,
Radio Host, Reporter, Writer and an Environmental Consultant on green living. The
Green Living Guy writes about green living, green lighting, the green guru guides
and more. Seth's books range from: # Build Your Own Electric Vehicle by Bob Brant
and Seth Leitman (2nd and 3rd editions) # Build Your Own Plug-in Hybrid Electric
Vehicle by Seth Leitman # Build Your Own Electric Motorcycle by Carl Vogel # Green
Lighting by Seth Leitman, Brian Clark Howard and Bill Brinsky # Solar Power For 
Your Home by David Findley # Renewable Energies For Your Home by Russel Gehrke #
Do-it-Yourself Home Energy Audits by David Findley # Build Your Own Small Wind Power
System by Brian Clark Howard and Kevin Shea # and more green living books to follow.

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