The Ebike Revolution Begins

What would it take to start an ebike revolution in Portland, Oregon? Portland is supposed to be one of the most bicycle friendly cities in the U.S. and yet only 4 percent of all trips in Portland are by bicycle. Compare that to Copenhagen where 36 percent of all trips are by bicycle, according to Evan Manvel, executive director of the Bicycle Transportation Alliance. Portland lags far behind European cities in the use of bicycles.

As a life long bicycle rider, I have been committed to riding my bicycle whenever practicable. I have braved traffic, rain, snow, dangerous drivers. I have tried, as much as possible to free myself from the automobile. However, I was diagnosed with breast cancer last year and after several surgeries and chemotherapy, I find that I don’t have the energy that I once had to bicycle everywhere. I realized that I’m now in the same boat as a lot of people. I find that distances over 5 miles are very daunting, although I used to ride between 10 and 15 miles everyday. I despair at the sight of a hill, although I used to charge up hills without thinking twice. Instead, I found myself driving my car even for short trips. I suddenly became very interested in electric bicycles as a way of continuing my bicycle-oriented lifestyle.

However, it wasn’t easy to find an electric bicycle. I went to Bike n’ Hike, which purported to have the Giant Suede E, but they were back ordered for months and there was no hope of trying one out. I found lots of ebikes online, but had no way of trying them. I didn’t know if I wanted a throttle system or a pedelec system (pedal assist). I could have gone up to Seattle to try out some ebikes at Electric Vehicles Northwest, but I really didn’t have the energy to do the trip on my own. I went to Scoot on This in Portland to talk to John and Tim (the owners) about converting my folding bike, and they wanted to help, but were completely overwhelmed with orders.
I started looking on line and compiling a website with all the information that I was gathering. I decided to start a blog about all the things I was learning about electric bicycles. It really shouldn’t be this hard to get an electric bicycle or and electric bicycle conversion in Portland, but it seems to be at the moment.

I believe that ebikes are the wave of the future in this era of dwindling resources. Why should we use a two ton vehicle that uses a gallon of gas to go 20 miles, especially for short trips? An ebike will go the same distance for about 5 cents worth of power. So you want to haul a lot of groceries? Why not attach a bike trailer?

One of the main things that Portland needs to do is make it safer for bicycle riders. Portland has made great strides in creating bike lanes and bike boulevards, but more coud be done. Creating bike lanes that are protected from cars would be the best idea. Also creating more safe bicycle parking. It is particularly upsetting to have one’s bicycle damaged or stolen while it is parked in a vulnerable place. Bicycle riders deserve more consideration in urban planning.
An electric bicycle is an ecologically sound machine. It uses 1/100th of the energy that a car does, and 1/70th the physical space.

I’m very fond of folding bicycles. I ride a Bike Friday, a wonderful bicycle that is manufactured in Eugene, Oregon by Green Gear Cycling. Despite its small wheels, it is geared like a larger bicycle, it rides like a dream, and it folds up into a suitcase that can take on an airplane without paying extra luggage charges. Furthermore, one can buy a trailer and haul the suitcase behind the bicycle once one arrives at one’s destination.

Converting the Bike Friday into an electric bicycle will give me the best of all worlds, a bicycle that I can ride even with in my semi-disable state, one that I can take on any sort of public transportation, and one that is very inexpensive. It is my hope to sell my car and rely entirely on bicycle and public transportation.

In this blog, I’ll be looking at people who are doing exactly that, living a car-free existence, thanks to electric bicycles.