A recent Guardian article explored the increasingly thorny issue of rental ebikes and their impact on our society – from dangerous riding to cluttering our streets and blocking access for disabled people.
I contributed some thoughts to this article and wanted to take the opportunity to expand on a few of the points featured in the article, and some things I said which didn’t make the edit.
A departure from the usual vibe of this channel, which is all about having a laugh on bikes with mates – bikepacking adventures, road and gravel rides with mates, plus the occasional tips for beginners and feature vids.
Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/__jakemay
Read ‘Please don’t hit me!’ The battle between ebikers and other cyclists by Zoe Williams on the Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2025/jan/15/please-dont-hit-me-battle-between-ebikers-and-other-cyclists
Source on pedestrian deaths involving cars and cycles: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/reported-road-casualties-great-britain-pedestrian-factsheet-2021/reported-road-casualties-great-britain-pedestrian-factsheet-2021
47 Comments
I would say there is nothing wrong with electric bikes at all, illegal ones get right on my nerves. And Lime bikes left in the middle of cycle lanes, the road, or in big massive groups on the pavement are just wrong. Santander bikes had the right idea, but I was always put off by the fact you never knew if there was space to leave it, once you got to where you were going. I think more Japanese style bike storage is needed, by where you slide your bike into a unit, and a robot stacks it away out of sight.
Totally agree – and it is quite amazing how cars have become such a dominant force and we as as society accept the thousands of road deaths caused every year by accidents involving cars. I always equate that to flying – if the same amount of people would die every year in plane crashes (around 1.700 deaths a year in the UK which would be more or less the equivalent of 8 passenger aircraft dropping from the skies every year) all planes would be grounded, investigations would be on-going and the outcry in society would be huge. But hey, it's road deaths and our cars are sacred, so we better look the other way.
Jake maybe wear a cycle helmet while riding your bike, and set a good example.
Real road cyclist wear helmets mate. I own two carbon road bikes & one electric road bike, I use the electric one for long arduous rides in the Peak District, with many hard climbs. My Specialized bike is within legal requirements & I'm probably slower than on my other bikes overall. It's not Ebikes that a disease, it's the people that ride them. Maybe your title should of been Illegal Ebikes are a disease?
Good video with many valid points especially regarding pavement parking. As regards deaths and injuries caused by cars v bikes, I may be wrong, but I think those with concerns about ebikes/bikes is that they are ridden on the pavement (pedestrian space) and although death via collision is unlikely, injury no matter how small is likely. How many of those pedestrian injuries/deaths by cars occurred on a pavement? Those are the statistics you should be comparing. Maybe then go deeper and see how many accidents there are on per journey made for each form of transport. Unfortunately, it is likely that many accidents and near misses (even pedestrians having to dodge a bike on a pevement) between pedestrians and cyclists are not reported. As such the figure will be artificially low. The problem is far greater than statistics will show. Pedestrians, by and large, do not fret about being injured by cars driving on the pavement so felt safe, but they do now worry about bikes/ebikes on the pavement and no longer feel they are in a safe space. The worst thing to happen was that chief Policeman saying that cyclists can use the pavement if they feel unsafe on the road. That by definition makes ALL pavements shared spaces. If you feel unsafe on the road do not cycle. It is not a right. I am a pedestrian, cyclists and driver.
Great take 👍
I pretty much agree with all your points 100%. For me the elephant in the room is the gig economy. I used to live in London for years, I now live in rural Somerset. It's very hilly by the way, and as I'm over 65 I just bought a motor assisted bike. If I stop peddling my heavy e-bike stops moving fairly instantly. I regularly visit London and food delivery e-bikers are moving at speed while not even peddling.
The food delivery job is paid per delivery, and the restaurant can incur a cost if the food is delivered late. So yeah, it's no surprise that very low paid workers, under a time constraint, have purchased powerful e-bikes, ride them at speed in pedestrianised areas and the wrong way on one way streets, through red lights etc. The gig economy is the culprit here, not the e-bike.
I hardly ever see an e-bike in rural Somerset. If I do, it's someone like me travelling quite slowly up a hill with the help of a hub motor.
The danger of e-bikes is all about big cities and food delivery.
I am 72 have raced and rode bikes all my life unfortunately coming up to my 70th birthday i found i was going slower and tired easily, eventually diagnosed with a heart complaint, thought my cycling days were over ,but bought a Specialized Creo ebike and now happy as larry ! ,although i agree that the fast food couriers are Mostly to blame with what are illegal bikes with twist grip controls. never go out without a helmet no matter how far your going !
Last week I had to run a bunch of errands about the place and couldn't take my bike so was bussing it about. As I was waiting for the bus on a typical road in Bromley, I counted at least 5 drivers using their phone whilst driving in about a 2/3 minute window.
Good work. I couldn't agree more about saying 'car' rather than 'driver'. It's language that is willfully ameliorating by ascribing agency, and by extension, culpability to machines.
Surprised air pollution in cities caused by cars hasn't been brought up. As someone who walks to work in a city daily the stink of fumes is horrendous. What illness does that pollution cause i wonder?
Wear a lid mate, most objects you will come into contact with following a crash/collision/side swipe etc are a lot harder than your cranium. I believe they have saved me from a serious head injury on a couple of occasions. Whether the wearing of one makes you more or less vulnerable due to other road users perceptions, is for me beside the point, I'd far rather wear one with the protection provided than not.
group rides with an ebike is in fact the same as being doped. e bikes ride in the back and do not interfere with the real thing
If you haven't watched it, GCN's video on Moto-normativity is fantastic. The way as a society we ignore/excuse everything cars do and will go to great lengths to try and argue something else is the problem. It's a fantastic watch, not too long, and very well informed.
its NEVER THE DRIVERS. DON'T LOOK AT THE DRIVERS. DONT MENTION THE DRIVERS. ITS NEVER THE DRIVERS
Some e bikers have not come from a cycling background more like a car drivers very rude and no common sense
e bikes ftw mate. i ride a cube mountain ebike, mostly DH and enduro. its a bloody revelation having to not push back up the hill which is more tiresome than riding, i can now eeeb it all the way back to the top. happy days.
When was the last time you heard of a cyclist being injured, let alone killed, by going through a red light? Er, never?
No helmet? No listen or like
My beef is illegal ebikes ! Delivery ebikes if they run red lights or exceed ebike speed limit they should face the law same as everyone else . My main beef is a Ebike that 40,50 + mph without pedaling is not a Ebike it's classed as a motorcycle and should have insurance, registration and all the rest . Ebikes that comply with law fine . Just recently 2 killed in Ebike crash in Moray NE Scotland, 3 youngsters on 1 Ebike crashed into a car . This is going to happen more and more as people completely ignore laws . The genie is out of the bottle.
People look at cars they're not currently in like animals herding, a part of nature
Turkey hair ftw
I'm a professional truck driver, I've driven full time for 7 years. Most people shouldn't be driving at all, they're just not capable of doing it safely; by itself, the number of people who should be disqualified because they can't stay off their phones would reduce the driving population by half. You can see how common that is from a few feet higher up in a commercial truck cab, it's pretty ridiculous.
Absolutely, we have c.41m and counting registered vehicles in the UK. Over 1m EVs which means we well over 35m are ICE cars. They are littered across the country parked on the roads/pavements. Even cycle lanes. They kill more, pollute more and a lot of drivers only make journeys in them of 5 miles or less. This is leading to motor normalisation and adding to the obesity crisis and long term burden on the NHS.
Get out of your cars peeps and walk/cycle more especially for local journeys of less than 1 mile.
Yes, there are those who are disabled and cannot use their legs. Mobility vehicles are available.
Stopped watching… whatever you wanna tell… wear a helmet first
I have got rid of my car a few years ago riding bicycles instead in a big city, covering a few thousand miles a year.
I rarely see a vehicle going through red lights, but every cyclists I see does.
Recovering from paralysis , rode an ebike as unable to get up hills with a normal bicycle. Got rid of the ebike and got a lighte bicycle when strong enough.
I no longer ride bicycles due to being uncomfortable, but got a recumbent trike which was converted to electric due to it's weight , but also have a sports recumbent trike now which is alot more fun and just as fast.
When I was riding a bicycle have been passed very closely by kids at 50mph or so on illegal ebikes wearing all black with nolights at night, no point reporting them as will be logn gone and they cant be identified as all black.
Couriers ride illegaly powerful ebikes and will go up steep hills at about 15mph passing you very closely giving you a surprise. Sometimes they do this without even pedalling which is also illegal as 4mph is the limit . Couriers ride without lights at night for some reason and alwasy jump red lights like other cyclists.
With regard to using cycle lanes, was forcefully cut off and stopped by a car driver so his wife could tell me I must use the cycle lane. The police had him prosecuted . What I found amusing is that he assumed I am ignorant of the highway code as a cyclist, not knowing I am a qualified advanced driver.
You're entitled to ride an ebike, but don't call the police if i mock you for being a weakling or when you injure yourself
All road users are as bad as each other, some worse than others. Even pedestrians are idiots a lot of time.
Lovely. But just confirmation bias for me! lol 😉
I always wear a helmet to ride to work (in Belgium some insurances demand it for commuting) BUT do you know where more headinjuries happen?? In a CAR!!! I don't see them asking to drive with a helmet!
Wear a helmet.
Cards on the table
I'm 56, a driver for over 30 years, and recent Ebike convert.
I'm a van driver as a job, and own a van for leisure as well as an Ebike. So i can see all sides here.
Best thing about owning a van, bung ya Ebike in the back and nip up to the peak district at 7am on a Sunday morning, then go for a scenic ride, best of both worlds for sure.
The problem we've got, and i mean all of us, there are more dickheads in the world than there used to be in recent decades.
Dickheads have always existed, but school and parental discipline and a fear of police kept there numbers low.
Discipline has now been mostly banned in schools, parents struggle, and as for the police?
These people are everywhere, in cars/vans, many of them are uninsured with no licence, and the police are to busy to catch them.
The new generation is now taking to the road in increasing numbers, Ebikes/scooters are usually there first attempt owning a vehicle.
This generation is learning on a daily basis they can pretty much do what they like and always get away with it.
Delivering in central London i see more bikes running red lights than cars/vans. (Deliveroo) And after that they're free to wizz through a pedestrianised area with no thought for anyone but themselves. Cars cant do that for the most part, as there tends to be bollards in the way.
Personally i find pedestrians way more of a hazard than cyclists, cyclists for the most part are at least trying to get somewhere. Pedestrians on the other hand wander across the road at 45 degrees so it takes longer without a thought for and vehicles on wheels coming at them.
Pedestrian apathy is now at epidemic proportions, trust me, ive inadvertently studied this for years.
In short, its the care free generation that are the problem.
Not the decent members of society that would like to coexist regardless of there choice of vehicle.
Rant over
There is a vid attached to this channel (pro motoring) less than 4 minutes long if you wanna risk watching it?
Gary from Watford
Driver
Cyclist
Poet
Peace maker.
I tend to agree with what you said. I've been cycling for about 40 years and have recently switched over to an EMTB and it's great. It's such a joy to be out in the hills without struggling too much. I can do up to 60 miles on it and feel reasonably good afterwards. The problem, as you said, is people in general, whether they're driving or cycling. I see just as many drivers breaking the rules as cyclists but thankfully, they are in the minority. Most people are ok. I know you said don't mention helmets but it only takes one mistake or one bad driver to ruin your life. I always wear one.
What i've noticed is these delivery ebikers do not ride at 40mph, they do not ride at 30mph, they do not ride any faster than 15-20mph. Why because they're trying to use as little power as possible. Yes they go through red lights, yes they ride on pavements, but no more than the pedal powered cyclist does. One plus point for ebikers, they don't wear spandex.
Hah, you thought a disclaimer would stop the helmet fundamentalists?
I'm a bit of a cycling addict. While I don't personally like e-bikes and would rather ride mechanical, I do see their place and if someone's health benefits from it then fine.
I also find it a bit hypocritical that this video discusses e-bikes safety when this guy isn't even wearing a helmet which is an absolute necessity especially around London.
You might as well just shave it off like i do, you'd be more streamlined.
You're deflecting the real issue: e-bikes are motorized vehicles. Stopping blaming cars (albeit that is a whole other issue) Blame people who insist on being motorized but not being willing to abide with how manually powered cycles and pedestrians are required to.
All very nice how you've just taken up cycling. I've been doing it for seventy years, and can and do still cycle a 100km trek in a day, weather, location and state of mind permitting.
If you're unable to see the problem e-bikers are causing for the rest of us, then I have to question your suitability to cycle safely.
Good take !
Hopefully it's not helmet vs. non-helmet wrong war, to hide the car problem… oh wait I just read the comments… nevermind 😆
I see lots of fat people on ebikes, better out riding a powered bike and having fun than sitting on the couch eating ice-cream and wat hing tv, just sayin…
I was shocked at how many cyclists in the UK don't wear helments when I lived there. I lived in east anglia and instead of having to fight the traffic in cities, I rode through approx 671 different villages on my work commute. In my experience drivers in the UK seemed better about bikes but worse about pedestrians than in the US. Drivers in the UK are heads and shoulders better than drivers in the US (especially Massachusetts…whew!). Not bothered by e-bikes at all, also not worried about what people wear when cycling, have it at whatever you want (including to wear or not wear a helment) and enjoy the ride. Still surprised at how terrified people are when they're riding. Not sure I'd continue to do it if I was that scared. However, I tend to stay away from busy city streets through, perhaps I'd be scared all the time too with cars in such close proximity while trying to get to work.
My main beef with ebikers is them riding recklessly fast on non-motorized trails. That's it. I've not seen issues with them on the road. It's just bloody uncomfortable doing, say, 18mph on your regular bike on, say, Chicago's lakefront trail, and have a modified ebike suddenly whiz by six inches away at 35mph, to say nothing of how you'd feel if you're the kind of biker who'd do 11 or 12.
Something people don't talk about enough is larger cars. This is a trend on both sides of the Atlantic. For the UK, it means over 50 years we've shifted from a world where a 61 inch wide Morris Minor was a compact and a 67 inch wide Cortina Mk 3 was considered wide, to a world where a Peugeot 208 is 69 inches wide and some German SUVs are hitting 80 inches. That's eight to 12 inches wider pretty much. You think of a road with a lane of traffic in each direction and parked cars on both sides of the street, that's FOUR FEET of safety margin just gone. Ouch!
Well balanced. It seems that bike renters (e-bike or not) tend to be more of a concern, lacking in skill, awareness, etiquette, etc.
I think reasonable laws about licensing and insurance for the faster e-bikes (those that approach speeds of scooters and motorcycle) as well as limiting access from bicycle/walking areas would help in situation… not completely fix it obviously, law/rule breakers exist in all fields (and yes, I know this also presents a law enforcement issue, but it would help in some aspects surely).
ITs common sense if you fall off and hit your head, most of the people in your video were wearing bicycle helmets. It is law in Australia to wear a helmet.
Cars are THE problem – end the massive car subsidy.
5:20 '….road tax….' – car drivers pay about $0.05/Km in petrol tax and get a road repair subsidy of about $1.50/Km from government.