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But here in Blighty where they’re primarily purchased as a lifestyle bolt-on, rather than a car replacement they probably cause a net increase and we all know it…
Using the word "probably" means that you don't actually know it, you're just having a guess. If you want to claim to know for sure, show some research on how many there are and how they're used. My guess is that it's not the huge problem you believe.
Trying to live a perfectly sustainable carbon neutral lifestyle in a world in which consumerism is expected and the world is built around car transport is so incredibly difficult, very few people can do it, so ultimately it will make almost zero difference to the unsustainable nature of the world..
It also pits people against each other arguing who is most virtuous in petty arguments, whilst the much larger problems go unchallenged.
So yes, you can complain that eMTBs are less sustainable than MTBs, but it's such a small part of the problem, it won't change anything.
Do your best, and campaign or vote to change the system.
(And part of that, might be restricting, taxing, or labelling all consumer goods with their lifetime environmental cost or something)
And stop saying "whataboutism"
IMO
But here in Blighty where they’re primarily purchased as a lifestyle bolt-on, rather than a car replacement they probably cause a net increase and we all know it…
I too would need to see some industry figures before I 'know it' too. My hunch is you are right that the purchase choices here are more mtb biased than in the EU is generally but if I was to judge with my own eyes the opposite would be true. I see one emtb regularly and 10-12 hybrids ebikes when I go into the local town. I just have the humility to know not to trust my eyes as de facto truth gathers just because they are mine!
The calculation is also a bit more complex than just replaces car journey like-4-like. My 75 year mother and partner are a good example. 2020 saw them buy hybrid ebikes and do 3000km on them. The vast majority of those were leisure miles with a few rides over to see us or to the shops. 2019 would have seen them walking for roughly the same amount of time - QED ebike replaces walking = bad. Complicating factor being they drove to those walks but rode from home. Therefore ebike replaces car drive to do leisure activity = good.
But here in Blighty where they’re primarily purchased as a lifestyle bolt-on, rather than a car replacement they probably cause a net increase and we all know it…
Really? I see them being used as car replacements all the time. yesterday I saw a woman riding an electric backfiets with 3 kids in the box. Now way could she have done that withot the electric assist. We also have delivery companies using them and even the hire bikes have some electric bikes. e bikes as utility bikes are a fast growing thing in Edinburgh and although we are a bit of an outlier in cycle usage there is no doubt at all in my mind that they are commonly used as car alternatives
so do you have any data to back that up? Or is it just an opinion based on confirmation bias?
Why do we never talk about the environmental cost of eMTB’s?
Probably for the same reason we don't talk about the environmental cost of pretty much every other electrical item you own.
You don't need a tv in your house but I bet you have one. The environmental impact of all the tv's produced every year far outweighs the impact of a comparatively small number of ebikes.
And closer to home I'd bet the environmental impact of manufacturing normal bikes far outweighs the impact of ebikes as well, simply as there are so many more of them being built
Better drop Elon Musk a quick e-mail to tell him he has got it wrong.. The initial impact on the environment to build an electric car is probably worse than a standard petrol car.
You can say the same thing about wind farms, solar power etc. Got a carbon neutral house in our road, very environmentally friendly except the tonnes of concrete used to build it.They all have an impact on the environment when being made.
There is so much bile around people who ride e-bikes most of it is unjustified. I know people in their 70's riding e-bikes and that can only be a good thing, healthier population less people needing medical care.As for not getting fit on an e-bike that's bunkum too, if you don't pedal you don't go anywhere and if that is the case you don't get fit then I need to give up walking.
As for an impact on the trails I'd say most of the damage to my local trails come from riders chasing KOM on a certain app, cutting corners braking late etc and I've seen it first hand while doing trail maintenance. If you don't like e-bikes good for you but you'll have to suck it up because they are here to stay. Most pro XC,CX,DH and enduro riders ride them off season. Nice new vid of Rob Warner riding with Danny Hart is on youtube.
So what after that? You stop eating red meat and announce yourself as having solved resource crisis and go buy a diesel transporter for your #vanlife?
Well if everybody stopped eating meat it would certainly go a lot further to solving the crisis than any other similarly as easy thing people could do. After that it is all about where you draw the line but if people can't even do such a simple thing as not eating meat then the harder things like not having a car are not going anywhere are they. Being concerned about eBikes is so far down the list that they are not even visible.
The op's lack of imagination in the thread is matched by assuming it all goes in the bin.
if people can’t even do such a simple thing as not eating meat then the harder things like not having a car are not going anywhere are they.
Actually, I'd find it easier to not own a car than to stop eating meat completely.
Actually, I’d find it easier to not own a car than to stop eating meat completely.
As they both have a similar reduction in carbon footprint; go on then, do it. Put your money where your mouth is.
slight tangent, but there is a cost to not having children. if there were no children who would pay into the welfare state when you are retired? your NI contributions don’t get put aside for future use, they pay for the currently retired. i suppose we could introduce a better tax system, but that is just dreaming.
but e-bikes and the hidden truth, yes they are l filthy, hateful things. though i’d have to drive my car to ride somewhere flat, so local rides on an ebike would possibly be better than driving to a flat area.
but e-bikes and the hidden truth, yes they are l filthy, hateful things.
Why? Reduction in car journeys and reduction in airborne pollution and urban congestion.
filthy, hateful things. though i’d have to drive my car to ride somewhere flat, so local rides on an ebike would possibly be better than driving to a flat area.
There's no "possibly" about it. Using a car to avoid riding a bike is much, much worse than using an e-bike. If you have a 700Wh battery in an e-bike, that's equivalent to 7KW for 6 minutes. An average car produces around 100 KW at peak power, so 30 seconds or so of full throttle is equivalent to a full e-bike charge. Starting your car up and driving round the block will use roughly the same amount of energy as a full charge on an e-bike battery. A 30 minute each way drive to a trailhead once a week for a year will completely eclipse the environmental impact of an e-bike across its lifetime. Driving a car to go and ride a bike and then criticizing e-bikes is bizarre.
Why do we never talk about the environmental cost of eMTB’s?
Because its insignificant compared to the impact of most other aspects of our comfortable early 21st century lifestyles- including yours OP.