POWER TO THE PEOPLE
It can fairly be argued that Bosch ebike Systems coming to the marketplace with an electric bike motor was the catalyst for the awakening of the e-bike movement now sweeping the world. Cycling Electric sits down with CEO Claus Fleischer to hear his view o
It hasn’t always been plain sailing for the electric bike. In fact, there have been false starts galore. The first signs of the e- bike came over 100 years ago in the US, where a patent was registered in 1895 for a concept resembling a battery- powered bicycle. A few years later the first iteration came to fruition in the form of a clunky motor tacked on at the crank’s axle, a concept that would later be revisited. Much later.
Realistically the modern electric bike didn’t come to market until the late 1990s but this second coming was little more attractive visually and in ride feel terms to what had hit the drawing board a century prior. While that might sound harsh, the late 90s electric bike was a product of the technology available at the time. Batteries came largely in lead acid format, the same as you might find in cars of the time and they weren’t much smaller or lighter.
Add to that a motor system that wasn’t supported by the depth of engineering knowhow found at leading manufacturers and their sub- contractors today and the recipe was, in a word, cumbersome.
The marketplace languished and resellers of electric bikes became disillusioned with the category. For years sales folk hoping to place a model in showrooms were turned away.
That was until a handful of large manufacturers began to experiment. Yamaha came to market 30 years ago with what it badges the first modern electrically assisted motor. Then came global electronics and engineering giant Bosch, followed by components giant Shimano. The sudden influx of wellfinanced research and development departments bringing concept drive systems forward was enough to spark a revival in interest. Veterans of the e- bike business will tell you that a hangover remained, though: the marketplace was not yet in the mood to have another go.
Steadily, though, word began to get out that the new motor and battery systems were sufficiently advanced to deliver an electric bike that actually wasn’t so bad to ride, albeit still on the cumbersome side compared to modern offerings. It was now simply a case of getting bums on saddles to experience what is now commonly referred to as the “e- bike smile”.
Bosch ebike Systems CEO Claus Fleischer has endured more than
a decade of the steadily ascending rollercoaster, having done his fair share of convincing in the early days.
“The main reason Bosch ebike Systems exists is that the company looked at probable mega trends in 2008 through 2009. It was then that we realised it was important that society has a sensible solution for journeys of between 5 to 10km. Interestingly in Bosch’s history our business sector was named after the automotive world. We renamed Bosch’s business sector around broader mobility some 12 to 14 years ago.”
For those not familiar with the corporate world’s assessment of ‘mega trends’, the goal is to predict the ways and means that we will live and do business in the future. Transport, technology, the environment and health and fitness are key pillars of such assessments in the modern sense. So what does this have to do with the electric bike? Well, with all probability the city vehicle of the future will be smaller to beat congestion. In the face of pollution and the climate crisis, it will likewise have to be clean and efficient.
E- bike technology makes it more likely that the consumer will take an interest, possibly seeing a bike as a viable transport form for the first time. Meanwhile, the motors are not so powerful that they strip away exercise; in fact, studies have shown that riders feel physical exertion over 95% of a typical ride and use only 7% less lung capacity than pedal cyclists.
“The city is fluid, with pedestrians and cyclists using the space, rather than filling it with a car that is static and space-taking for 23 hours of the day,” explains Fleischer.
“If you imagine taking those car journeys from the road, the city starts to look a lot emptier. You can then convert precious space back into a social environment”
“We conducted an experiment with a professor at a German University analysing the behaviour of people in the city, mainly commuters. As part of this we gave a pool of people electric bikes for ten days, encouraging them to take transport trips by bike, comparing notes from before and after. After the trial, we found that the city folk chose to take 73% of trips by e-bike. If you imagine taking those car journeys from the road, the city starts to look a lot emptier. You can then convert precious space back into a social environment.”
The city experiment continues, egged on by shifts in political stance toward private motoring in the face of social challenges and space constraints. With many European countries having enhanced policy to deter motoring in tight city spaces, either through congestion or pollution charges, or simply reallocating space to people, the propensity for people to cycle in what are perceived to be safer spaces rises naturally.
“The next barrier is a political one,” says Fleischer. “We discussed with politicians at the end of the summer the next steps for transforming mobility and they said more courage is needed in next- generation city planning. There was an admission that the current rules and standards provided for city planners are built just for cars and nothing else. The education from the universities amplifies this still and so they don’t know better. We learned from the pandemic that we can be courageous taking this action and get results that stimulate ridership. Yet at end of the year things reverted back to normal and we lost courage.”
Being able to freely experiment without red tape is especially critical at a time when money is becoming available for the purpose of converting space. While Claus’s advocacy work is mainly focussed on mainland Europe, the same conditions apply in the UK. The current delivery of the active travel budget is prioritised for those who have been ambitious, while those resisting change have had their slice of the pie trimmed. For the first time ever, local authorities have national cycling infrastructure design standards to reference and those pledging to have a proper go of utilising these guidelines are being funded.
“We in the bike industry have done our job over the past ten years to get people on bikes, without governmental will or subsidised help until recently. Rather than subsidies carrying the momentum of converting cyclists I would rather have continued conversion of space. Right now, we have the funding, but city planners say they cannot spend it due to administration. That’s the key to unlocking habitual changes – making cycling a natural choice,” adds Fleischer.
The evidence seems to back the claim.
Where streets have been transformed since the pandemic prompted fast alterations to street space, cyclists have arrived in droves, very often prompting surprise benefits to local economies.
In Paris, where mayor Anne Hidalgo committed €300 million for cycling infrastructure since Covid19 appeared, ridership has increased by almost 70% since the spring of 2020, accounting for around 15% of all trips in the French capital.
While there is a perception that drivers are responsible for the bulk of shopping, studies have shown that those arriving by bike remain in town centres longer, make more trips and spend more at a wider range of destinations. With no parking limits and more social spaces, the tendency is for shoppers to relax. Transport for London’s Walking and Cycling: The Economic Benefits study discovered those not arriving by car spend as much as 40% more each month in local stores.
With the electric bike shown to increase the likelihood of people taking to two wheels, Fleischer concludes that the sales trends across Europe look very promising for an economic boost. He’s not alone – two thirds of Germans in a 2020 GFK study expected electric bikes to gain importance as a transport form in the next five years. Like Bosch’s CEO, over half believe unlocking infrastructure is key to realising that potential.
“Two in five bikes sold in Germany are now electric and the pace of uptake is accelerating. I expect in the near term much of Europe will reach the state where every second bike carries some assistance,” he forecasts.