the bike is back with a battery

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Joint Actions on Climate Change, presentation ID# 2447:

The bike is back with a battery (as part of Tracks and Themes )

Session: Towards sustainable mobility: electrical, hydrogen, or both?

scheduled for Tuesday, June 9, 2009: 4:30 PM-6:30 PM,

Aalborg Congress & Culture Centre

The bike is back with a batteryDr.ir.FrankvanderHoeven,DelftUniversityofTechnology,FacultyofArchitecture

Theattentiontheelectriccarreceivesasapromisingmeansof

sustainabletransportationseemsattimestoovershadowtherise

ofthatotherelectricvehicle:thepedelecorelectricbicycle.For

thosewhodon'tknowyet:apedelecisabicycleassistedbyan

electricmotor.Thatmotorispoweredbyarechargeable(lithium

ion)battery.Themotorisintendedtoassistpedaling,notto

replaceit.Itisthenewestevolutionofthebike.Itsnumbersare

growingfast.

Thispaperassumesthatthegrowinguseofpedelecsrequiresa

differentapproachfromdesignresearchandpolicymaking

towardselectrictwowheelers.Itwilloutlinethemajordifferencesbetweenregularbikeuseandpedelecuseandaddressesissues

likecitytocitycycling,bicycletheft,parkingandstreetcharging.

[BiketecFlyerT]

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The bike's market share

Whenitcomestosustainablemobilitymostofthetransportationpoliciesseemto

focusonincreasingtheuseofpublictransport,combinedwithlandusepoliciessuchastransitorienteddevelopmentoftransportdevelopmentareas.{1}

Muchenergyandresourcesarepumpedintheconstructionandexploitationof

bus,BRTandlightrailsystemstoalmostnoavail.Currentlyonly3%ofallkilome

trestravelledinTheNetherlandsaretravelledusingbus,tramormetrocom

bined.Trainusersandcyclistsmakeupfor8%ofthosedistanceseach.Andyes,

cardriversandcarpassengerstogethermakeupforthreequartersofthekilome

treproduction,withrespectively51%and24%.{2}

Eightpercentoftheoverallkilometreproductionisasigniicantmarketshare,es

peciallywhenweconsiderthatthebikeismainlyusedforshortdistances.Inmid

sizedDutchtowns(matchingthedistanceswherebikesperformbest)theshareinthemodalsplitcanbeashighasonethirdofalltrips.

Modal-split and trip generation in The Netherlands, 2007 {2}Modalities Number of trips Distance per person per day Share in the modal-split

All modalities 2,99 32,6 100%

Car, driver 0,99 16,5 51%

Car, passenger 0,46 7,9 24%

Trein 0,06 2,7 8%

Bus/tram/metro 0,08 1,0 3%

Moped 0,02 0,2 0%

Bicycle 0,78 2,5 8%

Walking 0,58 0,7 2%

Other 0,05 1,2 4%

TheaverageDutchcitizencyclesabout2to3kilometresaday.Thatdistancedid

luctuatesomewhatovertheyearsbutisconsideredtobestable.Seenfroman

EuropeanperspectiveHolland(andDenmark)areatthetopwithabout1000

kilometrestravelledbybicycleperpersonperyear.{3}

Yearly distance travelled by bicycle per person in the EU15, 1995 {3}

.be .dk .de .gr .es .fr .ie .it .lu .nl .at .pt .fi .se .ukkm 327 958 300 91 24 87 228 168 40 1019 154 35 282 300 81

AsaresultbothHollandandDenmarkcompriseavastinfrastructureandpractice

thatsupportscycling.Childrenlearntobikewhentheyareyoungandknowfrom

earlyonhowtobehaveintrafic.Otherroadusersarewellusedandadjustedto

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cyclists,sharingtheirroadspace.Thegeomorphologyandclimate(exceptfor

wind)arefavourableaswell.Thesefactorscombinedmayverywellsustainthe

marketshareofthebikeintheyearstocome.Still,itdoesn'tseemlikelythatbike

usewillincreasespontaneouslyitsshareinthemodalsplit.

Two directions

Letsassumeforamomentthatthebicyclewithitshumanenginehasreachedits

maximummarketpenetrationwithroughly1000kilometresperyear,perperson.

Atthatpointweshouldaskwherewegofromhere.Therearetwointeresting

directionsthatcouldbetaken:focusonotherEuropeanmarketsorfocusonthe

possibilitiesthatamuchimprovedbikecanoffer.Webrielyexploreboth

directions.

AtanEuropeanscalewemaywanttotakeahardlookattheregionaldifferences

inbikeuse.Thescaleissubstantialwithahighof1019andalowof24kilometres

perpersonperyear.{3}Thisisadifferenceofafactor40.

Thesedifferencescaninpartbeexplainedbygeomorphologyorclimate.The

highsandthelowsaresofarapartthatwemayhavetoassumeotherfactorsare

atworkaswell.Inmostcountriesaneffectivecyclinginfrastructureislackingasa

resultofdecadesofcarorientedinfrastructurepolicies.Bymeansoftravel

demandmanagementitshouldbepossibletogettheFrench,theBritish,thePortuguese,theSpaniardsandtheGreektocycle.Itmayperhapsnotbe

reasonabletoexpectthemtotravel1000kilometresperyearbybikeanytime

soon.ButsofartheFrench,theBritish,thePortuguese,theSpaniardsandthe

Greektravelevenlessthan250metersaday.Thereisroomtogrowhere,atleast

intargetedcommunities,lifestyleoragegroups.

Atthesametimewemaywanttoimproveourunderstandingofwhatanew

generationbicyclescouldmeanforboththecommunitiesthatareusedtobiking

andthosethatarenot.Pleaseconsiderforabriefmomentthephasesthebike

alreadywentthrough.

Thebikewasinventedasa'walkingmachine'(Laufmachine),muchasthevehicle

smallchildrenusewhentheystarttolearnbiking.Rotarycranksandpedalswere

introducedtothefrontwheelhub.Thepedalsmadeitnecessarytoincreasethe

frontwheelthatwasturnedbyusingmusclepower.

Increasingthefrontwheelreducedtheeffortthatisnecessarytostartthebike,

moveituphillormakeitfaceheadwind.Itresultedintotheiconicbikewithits

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largefrontwheelandsmallbackwheel:thevelocipede.Finallytheuseofchain

wheelsandarollerchain,transferringpowerfromthepedalstothedrivewheel,

improvedthedistributionofthemusclepowerdrastically.Itbroughtthebike

roughlytotheconigurationasweknowittoday.Atthismomentweare

witnessingthenextevolutionofthebike:thepedelecorelectricbike.Itcoincides

withanoverallriseininterestintothepossibilitieselectricmobilityoremobility.

[Laufmachine]

Replacing the motor of a car

Say:emobilityandmostofuswillthinkofelectriccars.Thereisastrongcaseto

investincleanercartechnologycars.Thesheernumbersaspresentedabove(ashareinthemodalsplitofthreequarters)guaranteesthattheimpactofintroduc

ingelectriccarsonourroadswillbesigniicant.Itisneverthelessinterestingto

speculatewhattheconversionofinternalcombustionenginetoanelectricengine

willmeanforthewaypeopleusetheircar.Itwillcertainlyleadtobetterenviron

ment:lessnoise,lessairpollution.Butwillthefunctionalityofthecarchange

much?Doestheelectriccardrivefaster?Doesitdrivefurther?Willitbeeasierto

indaparkingplace?Theanswerisno.Drivingspeedisregulatedbylawand

basedmainlyonsafety,notonfueleficiencyandonlysporadicallyonenviron

mentalimpact.Thecapacityofthebatteryandthetimethatisnecessarytoillup

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anelectriccarmayonedayliveuptoacarwithacombustionengine.Itisnot

likelyitwillexceeditanytimesoon.Findingaparkingspacemaybeevenmore

complicatedbecauseyoumayhavetoindaspotthatcanchargeyourcar.Illegal

parkingwillbeathingofthepast.Theenvironmentalimpactontheurbanenvi

ronmentwillbehuge.Butintermsoffunctionalityitlookslikethatacarwithan

electricengineperformsmuchlikeacarwithaninternalcombustionengine.

Introducing a motor to a bicycle

[BiketecFlyerT]

Theattentiontheelectriccarreceiveasapromisingmeansofsustainabletransportationseemtoovershadowtheriseofthepedelecorelectricbike.Forthose

whodon'tknowyet:apedelecisabicycleassistedbyanelectricmotor.Thatmo

torispoweredbyarechargeable(lithiumion)battery.Themotorisintendedto

(dynamically)assistpedaling,nottoreplaceit.Inlegaltermsapedelecisinthe

EUaregularbicycleaslongasthemotor'spowerdoesn'texceed250Wandas

longthemaximumspeedisleveledoffto25km/h.Highspeedpedelecswitha

speedupto35km/hdoexist.Switzerlandforinstancedoesn'tregulatethebike's

maximumspeed.IntheEUsuchpedelecsarelegallyregardedasmopeds.

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Intheyear2008almost140.000pedelecsweresoldinTheNetherlands.This

numbergrewfrom22.000in2004,34.000in2005,44.000in2006and89.000in

2007.{4}

year Number of electric assisted bicycles sold in The Netherlands per year {4}

2004 22.000

2005 34.000

2006 44.000

2007 89.000

2008 140.000

Althoughpedelecsstillrepresentedin2007only6%oftheactualnumberofbikesbeingsold,duetotheirhighpricetagtheyalreadyaccountforathirdofthe

turnoverinbicyclessalesintheNetherlands.In2008thismarketsharealready

grewto10%.Thismakesitverylucrativetomarketthem.Intheearlyyearssales

weremainlytargetedattheelderlypopulation.Currentlythepedelecsaredis

coveredbycommutersandotheragegroups.Theintroductionofcitymodelsand

electricallyassistedmountainbikessupportsthatdevelopment.Onecansafely

saythatasilentrevolutionisgoingon.Itisarevolutionthatisn'tmuchdebated

bytheresearchcommunity,neitherbypolicymakers.

Meet the bike 2.0

Themostinterestingaspectaboutapedelecisthatitisamuchimprovedbicycle.

Itisabike2.0.Themotormultipliessomeone'smusclepower.Theyassist.Some

modelsalreadyassistitsownerdynamically.Whenthispersonfacesincreasedre

sistancebywindorslopingterrainthemotorwillworkhardertocompensatefor

it.Anelectricbikeisabikethatallowelderlytocycleuntilanolderage.People

livingincitiesorruralareaswithsteepheightdifferenceswillbeneitstrongly

frompedelecs.Ridinguphillusingapedelecrequiresthesameeffortasridingaregularhorizontalstreet.Pedelecsallowcommuterstobridgelongerdistances.

Peopleusingapedelecdonotsweat,whichisamajorissuewithtripsbetween

homeandtheofice.TheCroydon(aLondonBorough)cyclingcampaigngivesive

reasonswhytheylikepedelecs:{5}

Social need

Therearemanypeoplewhomaywantandneedabitofelectricassistance,

whetherthroughinclination,ageorphysicalfrailty,oraneedtoridequicklyto

workwithoutneedingtoshowerandchange.

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Environmentally responsible

Pedelecsconsumeatinyamountofenergycomparedtomopeds,motorcyclesor

cars;andtheonlyconsumablesoverandaboveastandardcyclearethebatteries,

whichcannormallyberecycledwhentheyhaveexpired.Typicalpower

consumptionis0.10to0.15kW,comparedwithabout15.0kWforacar.

Socially responsible

Pedelecs,likepedalonlycycles,arerelativelylightandslowmovingvehiclesthat

(unlikecars,motorcyclesandlorries)poselittledangertopedestriansandother

vulnerableroadusers.UnderEUlaw,electriccyclescannotprovidepowerover

25km/h(or16mi/h).

Effective

Pedelecstendtogetusedoften,ratherthanleftgatheringcobwebsinthegarage

likemanystandardbicycles.Combinedwithacycletrailer,theycaneasilyhelp

towtheweeklyshopforalargefamily.

True cycles

Pedelecsaretruepedalcyclesunderthelaw,withalltheeverydayeaseofuse

advantagesthisimplies:

righttoride,i.e.notests,licensing,taxesorotherhassles

noneedforhelmetsorspecialclothing

trainoperatorscarrybicycles,enablingeffectivemixedmodetravelrighttousecycleandbuslanes

Pedelecsdonotsimplyreplaceregularbicycles.Theywillchangethewaybicycles

areusedandhaveasigniicantimpactinthewaypeoplemovearoundontwo

wheels.PossiblyitmayallowtheDutchandDanishtobikeevenmore.Probablyit

willallowthePortugueseandGreekfortheirsttimeintheirlivesenjoyabike.

Stilltheirarehurdlestobeovercomethataren'taddressedyetinthedesignof

bikesorintheinfrastructurepoliciesoflocalandregionalauthorities.

City to city cycling

MostDutchmunicipalitiespossesimpressivebicyclenetworks.Butthatinfra

structurefallsshortifyouwanttomovebetweentowns.Theoutoftowninfra

structureisoftendevelopedwithrecreationalobjectivesinmind.Theyconsistof

scenicroutesbutdonotnecessarybringyoustraightfrom'A'to'B'.Theoutof

townrecreationalroutespossesanotherdisadvantage.Theyaren'tbuiltwithso

cialsafetyinmind.Mostrecreationalusetakesplaceinthespringorsummersea

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sonduringdaylight.Inthewintertimetheseroutesarestraightoutunfriendlyto

women,elderlyandothervulnerableuserswithlackingilluminationandthereg

ularuseofnomanslands.Ifpedelecsareabouttoexpandthereachofregularcy

clists,thantheoverallnetworksneedaserioussecondlooktosupportthatmobil

ity.Indenselypopulatedregionsregionalauthoritiesneedtoprovide'bicycles

highways'thatinterconnecttheurbannetworks.

Bicycle theft

Anelectricbikeisagreatbutexpensiveasset.Typically,thepriceofapedelecwill

rangebetween1000and3000euro.Withtheirgrowingpopularitytheywillbe

comeincreasinglyvulnerabletotheft.BicycletheftisamajorissueinTheNether

landsthathampersthefurthergrowthofbicycleuse.OnJune14th2007,after100daysinofice,theDutchgovernment(Balkenende

IV)pledgedtohalvetheamountofbicyclesstolenbyreducingbicyclethefteach

yearwith100.000casesfromtheyear2006level.Initsstatementthegovern

mentclaimed750.000bicycleswerestolenin2006.{6}Butaccordingto'Statis

ticsNetherlands'909.000persons(15yearsorolder)experiencedbicycletheftin

2006.{7}Eventhegovernmentseemtounderestimatetheseverityoftheissue.

Thesenumbersrelatetoregularbikes,bikesthatfetchbetween10and100euros

whentheyaresoldafterbeingstolen.Electricbikesaremuchmorelucrative.

Eventheessentialpartsofapedelecareatrisk.Aremovablelithiumionbattery

(currentlystandardisedbytheEnergybusgroup{8})willcostabout500to600euros.Thebatteryisrelativelysmall,beingsomewhatlargerthanamilkpackand

poorlylockedonthevehicles.

Parking

Inthedenselybuiltareasmostofthe(prewar)homeslacktheabilitytoparka

bikeindoors.Becausepedelecstendtobemuchheavierthatregularbikes(2025

kilo),peoplewillnotwanttocarrythemupstairs.Theycouldoptforabikewitharemovablebatteryandbringthebatteryintheirhometochargeit.Inthatcase

theyhavetolockupthebikeoutdoorsandleaveittheiratnightsandholidays.If

theywouldthinktheremovablebatterytoomuchofariskbecauseitdetachable,

theycanalwaysoptforapedelecthatintegratesthebatteryinitsframe.Butthan

theyfaceproblemshowtochargetheirvehicle.Rememberitistooheavytoex

pectthatpeoplearewillingtocarryitupstairs.Iflocalauthoritieswanttheirciti

zenstocyclewithassistedbikestheyhavetotakeaseriouslookattheftproof

parkingandcharging.Noeffectivesolutionsexistatthispointyet.

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Street charging

Solutionsseemverywellpossible.TakealookatVelib,theParisSelfServicebike

hiresystemthatisavailable24hoursaday,7daysaweekintheFrenchcityoflight.{9}Itusessocalledstationsthatareequippedwithroughlytwentybike

standsconsistingofabikelockingmechanismandacardreader.Itsecurely

storesandregistersthepositionofthevehicleinthenetworktohaveitavailable

atrequest.Becausethebikemakesphysicallycontactwiththestanditshouldn't

requirerocketsciencetoincludeachargingsolutionbothintheparkingfacility

andthevehicleitselftocombinebothparkingandchargingatthesametime.It

doesrequirehoweverthatindustryandlocalorregionalgovernmentsmeetand

agreetodevelopjointlypracticalsolutionsandstimulatetherolloutofsucha

system.

Then,havingahighqualitychargingandparkingsolutionsintegratedinpublicplaces,mayverywellunlocktheacceptanceofsimilarsolutionsforothervehicles

suchasmopedsandcars.

[Velib,Paris]

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Conclusion

Theemergenceofelectricassistedbicycles(pedelecsorelectricbikes)seemto

signalthenextevolutionofthebicycle.Itofferstheprospectofagrowingshareforbikinginthemodalsplitofthosecountrieswherethemarketseemstobesat

urated.Itmayverywellofferanadvancedpathtointroducecyclinginmarkets

wheretheuseofbicyclesistraditionallyweak,duetogeomorphology,climateor

culture.Localandregionalauthoritiesneedtobeawarethatachanginguseofbi

cyclesoverlongerdistancesrequiresthattheoutoftownrecreationalnetworks

needtobeadaptedtoworkseamlesslywiththeurbannetworks.Localgovern

mentsandindustryshouldworkjointlytoeffectivelysolvetheft,parkingand

chargingissues.Thattaskisfarfromdaunting.Componentsforthesolutionsare

available.Thebottomupdevelopmentofelectricbikingdeservesnevertheless

moreattentionitreceivescurrentlyfromdesignresearchandpolicymaking.Asacleantechnology,agrowingindustryandameanstoremainhealthy,theelectric

bikedeservesitrightfulplacebetweenothermodalities.

References

{1}Hine,P.,Edge,J.,Gal,K.,Chambers,M.(2005)TransportDevelopmentAreas.NovaTerraConnected

Cities(December2005),pp.811.

{2}CBSStatLine(2009)Availableat:http://statline.cbs.nl/(accessed10.05.2009)

{3}Dekoster,J.,Schollaert,U.(1999)cycling:thewayaheadfortownsandcities(Brussels,European

Commission)

{4}BOVAGRAI(2008)Availableat:http://www.bovagcijfers.nl/bovag_cijfers_2wielers_nl_2008.html(ac

cessed11.05.2009)

{5}CroydonCyclingCampaign(2008)Availableat:http://www.croydonlcc.org.uk/(accessed

09.05.2009)

{6}ConnectedCities(2007)Availableat:feed://connectedcities.eu/rss/news.xml/(accessed

10.05.2009)

{7}CBSStatLine(2009)Availableat:http://statline.cbs.nl/(accessed10.05.2009)

{8}Energybus(2009)Availableat:http://www.energybus.info/Basics/WhatisEnergyBus(accessed

10.05.2009)

{9}VlibvlosenlibreserviceParis(2009)Availableat:http://www.velib.paris.fr/(accessed

10.05.2009)

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