E-bikes are making headlines for all the wrong reasons. NYT Magazine subscribers were greeted last Sunday with a feature article highlighting an e-bike crash victim. The Sunday Edition then profiled author David Darlington under the headline "The Dangers of E-bikes." If readers weren't worried about e-bikes before last weekend, chances are that they are now.
Despite the alarming headlines, Darlington's reporting is balanced and well researched. He interviews public safety and public health officials, bike advocates, lawmakers, and crash victims, diving deep on throttle-equipped Class 2 e-bikes, the electric dirtbikes they are often styled to resemble, and the danger in allowing both types of products to be sold to be sold as "e-bikes." (As Jalopnik.com noted, many parents have trouble telling the difference.)
Will the negative spotlight on e-bike safety prompt regulatory action? That's what John Maa, one of the Marin County physicians Darlington interviewed, is hoping. He surveys the patchwork of state and local laws, noting that while a majority of states have adopted PeopleForBikes e-bike 3 class system in whole or part, a lack of federal regulation leaves loopholes that still allow motorbikes to be sold as electric bicycles.
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