Police in the Netherlands seized 10,500 illegal e-bikes in 2024, an indication of the emerging threat to bike rider safety posed by what are, in effect, electrically powered motorcycles.
These potentially dangerous bikes are rapidly sneaking into bike lanes and shared paths around the world, and in Australia have hit the headlines due to their burgeoning popularity with teenagers.
Mostly sold online, with their electronics tampered with to provide extra power, throttle grips fitted to avoid the need to pedal and batteries and chargers of such poor quality that home insurers are panicky, the machines are also a potential risk to the reputation and business of the legitimate e-bike sector.
The Netherlands was one of the European nations that the developed the original specifications for the bicycle with electrical assistance, known as the pedelec.
Carefully designed so that the e-bike could safely share the same infrastructure and road rule environment as standard bicycles, and provide some the same health benefits, the pedelec concept also provided certainty for the bicycle industry to invest in the research and development of reliable power-train technology, in new manufacturing techniques, dealer networks, staff training and spare part stocks.
The number of people fined for illegal e-bikes offences in The Netherlands has doubled in three years. On the first offence the fine is A$510 and on the second offence the bike is seized.
Netherlands police have deployed mobile bench-testing units, which can measure the speed and power of any e-bike, and are testing thousands of bikes.
If the electric assistance can propel the bike faster than 25km/h, the power is measured as exceeding 250 watts, or there is a throttle grip fitted, an offence is automatically registered and a is fine issued or the bike is seized if it is a second offence.
It is estimated that most of the bikes seized are the so called "fat bikes”, notable for their resemblance to a motorcycle.
OPINION:
Police in Australia have certainly not seized 10,500 illegal e-bikes, probably not even 10.
However, riders are increasingly voicing their concerns to Bicycle Network regarding the risks of sharing their ride to work with fast, heavy e-bikes with no evidence of pedals being used.
They have a point: none of us signed up to share a bike lane with an unlicensed motorcyclist.
Federal and state authorities are certainly aware of the issue, but little has been done.
Seizing some of these bikes would be a start.
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