30 | Cycling World
Studies into
E-Bike Usage
Written by Aslak Fyhri
and Hanne Beate Sundfør,
Institute of Transport Economics
I
n several European countries, sales of electric bicycles
have grown tremendously in recent years. In Norway,
with theirr steep slopes, sales figures have lagged.
To gain more knowledge about why this is the case,
in
, the nstitute of Transport conomics started a
research program us ing a combination of data collection
methods (surveys and mobile apps) and study designs
cross-sectional studies and experimental designs .
Among the research questions they addressed were:
•
What are the characteristics of potential customers?
What role can e-bikes play in overcoming people s
barriers to cycling?
ow much increased cycling can e-bikes lead to,
and to what extent can they help to reduce
motori ed traffic
What are the effects of e-bikes on overall physical
activity levels?
Nearly ten thousand people were interviewed about
their perceptions of cycling in general, and e-bikes in
particular. rom this, we learned that the e-bike primarily
seemed to attract those who cycle the least. Those who
do not cycle at all were a little less interested than those
who were infrequent cyclists see igure . This can be
taken as an indication that e-bikes are unlikely to lead
to a large reduction in normal cycling, but that they are
more likely to result in shifting people away from using
motorised transport.
Yes, absolutely
Yes, maybe
35%
30%
25%
20%
15%
23%
22%
24%
20%
10%
5%
0%
10%
11%
5%
0 km
7%
0.1 to 5 km
5%
5.1 to 10 km
2%
3%
2%
10.1 to 20 km 20.1 to 30 km
Over 30 km
Figure 1: interest in buying an e-bike according to weekly cycling length. Percent.
Interestingly, those who were willing to pay more for an