With gas prices on the rise and EVs starting from $30,000, many people around the world are switching to electric bikes (or ebikes) for their daily commute.
Electric bikes have been extremely popular in Europe. And lately, they have made their way into the North American market as well.
Ebikes are super affordable, not just to buy, but to operate and maintain as well. They are extremely convenient to use, park, store, and transport. Also, let’s not forget the health benefits.
With so many upsides and no apparent downsides, electric bikes will just increase in popularity, that’s for sure. But can they become so popular as to replace cars?
Well, that’s what we will discuss.
They’re good economics
The biggest argument for replacing your car with an ebike is simple. It’s good economics. But is it?
An average used car costs around $10,000, while new cars start from $18,000. Ebikes? Well, they start from as low as $199. No kidding. There are plenty of Chinese brands churning out cheap ebikes like crazy.
These ebikes are a solid buy. You can use them for weekend getaways, for shorter commuters around the neighborhood… but they can, by no means, replace cars.
They are only good enough for newbies looking to see if they should buy an ebike.
After these cheap ebikes, we then have mid-range ebikes, costing around $1,500 to $2,000. These ebikes are superb… especially when it comes to value for money. They offer good range, excellent hill climbing assist, and plenty of cool tech.
Brands like Rad, Aventon, Ride1UP, Electric Bike Company, Sixthreezero offer all kinds of mid-range ebikes.
Be it a commuter ebike for urban use, a mountain ebike for trail riding, or a fat tire ebike for off-roading – you can pretty much get it all at a very reasonable price. These bikes will truly endure and can be a reliable mode of transport.
Then, comes the top-tier ebikes offered by brands like Trek and Specialized.
These cost around $4,000 to $8,000… and boy, they’re the real deal. It might sound absurd to buy an ebike for $8,000… and not a car. But let’s not forget the operation and maintenance costs here. It’s practically zero in case of ebikes. So, yes, it’s good economics after all.
Also, you don’t need to buy an $8k ebike. A $2k ebike is more than good for 99% of use cases.
They’re good for your health
The second biggest argument for an ebike after affordability is the health benefits it brings.
Yeah, I know, you’ll start gym from next week… but both you and I know that, that week will never come. The best you can do is buy an ebike, and get a workout every time you go to your office or school.
An improvement in your health means savings on healthcare expenditure.
They’re good for cities
Electric bikes are perfect for urban use, especially in congested cities where car parking has become too much of a hassle.
Thanks to their compact size, you can park them anywhere. One downside is that you’ll have to lock them… but taking out 30 seconds a bunch of times in the day won’t make much of a difference… well, unless you’re a CEO on Wall Street.
They’re good for environment
Electric bikes are also environmentally friendly, so any responsible citizen should prefer them to conventional modes of transport, especially gasoline cars.
Yeah, EVs are eco-friendly too… but let’s face it, you wouldn’t have opened this article if you could afford a Tesla.
So, unless you can, why not commute on ebikes and curb your emissions.
Are they better than cars?
Comparing ebikes with cars is just like comparing apples with oranges. Not even that, it’s like comparing apples with elephants. They’re just two different modes of transport with unique benefits of their own.
But in certain cases like your daily commute to work/ school or your weekend getaways, buying an ebike can reduce your car trips. And it can do this while being cost effective, eco-friendly, and good for your health.
The important thing is, you buy the right electric bike for you. Don’t overspend on an ebike with features you might not need at all. If your needs can be met by a $2k ebike, don’t buy the $8k one… and if they can be met by a $500 ebike, don’t buy the $2k one.
Also, if you’re not sure if an ebike is right for you, it might be a good idea to try out a basic one. There are plenty of cheap ebikes on Amazon with prices starting from as low as $199 that you can get to see if ebiking is for you or not.
Hope it was an informative read!
