Electric bicycles are on the rise. In 2015, 6.54% of the bicycles sold in Europe provided electrical assistance. Belgium is traditionally one of the frontrunners, with an e-bike market share of 39.2% in 2016. Most e-bikes are classical pedelecs, limited in the European Union to a maximum assistance speed of 25 km/h and a maximum continuous rated power of 250W. More recently, speed pedelecs were introduced, exceeding these limitations with a maximum assistance speed of 45 km/h and a typical maximum continuous rated power of 350W or 500W. These electric two-wheelers have a high potential for attracting the younger consumer while lengthening the active commuting range up to 40 km. In this paper preliminary results of a Belgian naturalistic cycling study with more than 40 speed pedelec users are presented, including the correlation between the cruising speeds of different types of speed pedelecs and the maximum continuous rated power of these cycles. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting