What’s really stupid about limiting e-bikes by wattage is that it discriminates against cargo bikes. Limiting by capping assisted top speed makes much more sense.
Nuanced I know, but it also bothers me that the term ‘ebike’ is applicable to both pedal assisted and throttle controlled bicycles.
As you point out, a kilowatt would do quite differently for a cargo bike than a commuter bike. More severe still is the difference between acceleration on a pedal assisted cargo and a commuter with the throttle wide open.
It’s startling how fast some of these bikes can achieve car like speeds.
What’s really stupid about limiting e-bikes by wattage is that it discriminates against cargo bikes. Limiting by capping assisted top speed makes much more sense.
Nuanced I know, but it also bothers me that the term ‘ebike’ is applicable to both pedal assisted and throttle controlled bicycles.
As you point out, a kilowatt would do quite differently for a cargo bike than a commuter bike. More severe still is the difference between acceleration on a pedal assisted cargo and a commuter with the throttle wide open.
It’s startling how fast some of these bikes can achieve car like speeds.
Acceleration and top speed both need to be controlled if they are to be bikes. Watts puts too much incentive to cheat.
Bosch seems to did pretty well with their cargobike mid-drive. If you’re a cargobike maker you’d want a mid-drive anyway.