Electric bikes Essential information before you buy

Electric bikes can make motorcaravanning even more fun - here’s what you need to know about them

If someone cycles past you up a steep hill looking serene and sweat-free, they are either very fit indeed – or riding an electric bike.

E-bikes still have pedals and can be ridden like conventional bicycles, but integrated motors add power and propulsion when needed.

They range from bikes with small motors that assist when a cyclist is pedalling (known as pedelecs), to models with throttles, which can operate like mopeds when the rider engages the motor.

While e-bikes have enjoyed a real surge in popularity since the late 1990s, they’ve actually been around since the Victorian era. Ambitious inventors and engineers first attached motors to bicycles in the 1880s.

Although e-bikes had the potential to ease traffic and pollution, heavy, electrically driven wheels and weak batteries made the early attempts pretty much impractical.

Battery power

The invention of lithium-ion batteries in 1991 finally made the lightweight e-bike a reality. An e-bike can now cover more than 100 kilometres before it needs charging.

While e-bikes don’t do all of the work for cyclists, they can make cycling considerably easier and far more accessible. From city commutes to countryside adventures, they reduce the amount of effort cyclists need to put into their journeys, but still manage to provide that enjoyable wind-in-your-hair feeling.

They’re also really good for touring, allowing you to explore the area around your campsite with ease

(just watch the weight of the bike, and consider where you’ll stow it when you’re on the road and on site).

It won’t be long before one in three bikes sold across central Europe will be electric. As well as providing financial benefits for countries manufacturing and distributing the bikes, it’s hoped that this boom in sales will improve health as more people choose to cycle.