For more than a year, the emails, social media posts, and calls have come in to CalBike, the California Air Resources Board, and the administrator of the statewide E-Bike Incentives Program, Pedal Ahead. People with disabilities, without housing, or without other transportation options have reached out to learn about getting an e-bike incentive.
It has taken longer than expected to launch this much-anticipated program. And while the program is moving closer to launch, we aren’t privy to specific timelines right now. In the meantime, we wanted to highlight stories from some of the people we’ve had contact with about e-bike incentives.
The EBIP program will help people with lower incomes purchase an e-bike. These people might include daycare providers, folks working in restaurants, or other hardworking members of our communities. And many others can benefit from this program, like people with disabilities, older adults, and people experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity.
In this installment of our #ebikestories series, we share (anonymously) some of the stories we’ve heard from people for whom an e-bike voucher could be a life-changing benefit.
Moving through disability
There’s been a lot of hand-wringing about the “danger” of teens riding e-bikes, but the populations that may have the most to gain from an electric boost are older adults and people with disabilities.
Posts from CalBike’s Facebook page, lightly edited.
I am a low-income senior/live in the mountains and miss riding bicycles for good exercise. The grades here kill me on a regular bike…bum knees/2 lower discs toast. If i have to ride hard uphills, the sciatica kicks in and I end up in bed with intense pain.
Kicked my car to the curb yrs ago. I’m 70 & love riding my bike for exercise & errands. Unfortunately, I just developed a health issue that affects my pedaling capabilities. This would be a well-needed gift for me to continue being an environmentally concerned citizen of planet Earth. However…sounds too good to be true.
I’ve had 10 major spine surgeries, including 4 fusions, and I have a widespread degenerative nerve disease. I bought an e-bike in January to get to work and use my car less and almost have 2000 miles on it. It wouldn’t be possible for me to do that if I had to rely on my body completely with a regular bike. I bump the power level down, so I use my own power more, and I’ve definitely seen improvement in my physical condition. So, while some of y’all poo poo the e-bikes, keep in mind that not everyone can ride a regular bike like you suggest.
In #ebikestories 2, we shared more stories of people using e-bikes to keep riding through age and disability.
Mobility is a lifeline
The most heart-wrenching calls and emails we’ve received have been from people contending with a variety of life traumas and lacking adequate housing and transportation. As people navigate complex bureaucracies to receive aid, find work, and find housing, the low-cost, efficient mobility provided by an e-bike is a life-changing asset.
We’ve heard from a disabled woman fleeing abuse and living in her car, which stopped running. She is hoping to get an e-bike to get to appointments to get medical care and find housing.
A man contacted us about his wife, who has MS. He also has a disability, and they would love to have e-bikes for transportation while they wait for Section 8 housing to come through.
We even heard from someone in Mississippi. He and his buddy, both unhoused, would have more opportunities to earn if they could get around by e-bike.
The transformative power of e-bikes might be most profound in the lives of those least able to afford one. That’s why programs like California’s E-Bike Incentive Project and local, needs-based incentives are essential. E-bikes aren’t just an environmentally responsible way to get around; they are crucial transportation for many people left behind by our current transportation systems.
https://www.calbike.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/poppies-and-bikes.jpeg480640Laura McCamyhttps://www.calbike.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/calbike-logo.pngLaura McCamy2023-11-06 15:35:432023-11-06 16:34:33#ebikestories 7: Who Will Benefit from California’s E-Bike Incentives?
Erin Shannon’s work as a project administrator for a general contractor takes her to project sites or to the main office, which means a commute from Oakland to San Francisco or South San Francisco. “I had to drive to and from. That was an hour or hour and a half to get there and up to three hours to get home,” she says. “It was not okay.” Taking transit wasn’t any better, particularly since part of the commute would involve tricky timing to catch a shuttle. Her health suffered. “I was absolutely miserable,” she recalls.
Three things happened to change Shannon’s life. “I had one of my best friends pass away and it made me want to change my life, to live,” she says. “Then I met someone.” Her new friend was a “heavy-duty bicyclist.” So, when her car got totaled, her friend helped her use the insurance money to buy an e-bike. He set up her bike so it is really comfortable to ride.
With the e-bike, Shannon was able to change her commute from being stuck in traffic to riding to and from public transit. “I had been really depressed before I started moving so much,” she says. “I feel healthier, mentally as well as physically.”
CalBike’s long campaign for e-bike purchase incentives
CalBike’s goal is to create a healthier and more equitable California by making biking accessible to more people. We do that by advocating for state funding for bikeways and changes to laws and regulations to create safer streets. E-bikes, because they make the life-changing joy of bicycling accessible to a wider range of people, are a vital part of that strategy.
“Electric bikes make biking a viable transportation choice for a broader range of people,” says Dave Snyder, CalBike’s executive director. “But, with the price of an average e-bike at $1,500 or more, many people need help to make that purchase. California gives incentives to help people buy EVs; it should do the same for e-bikes.”
In 2019, CalBike helped pass SB 400 (Umberg), which added e-bike vouchers to the Clean Cars 4 All program. The program, administered by the California Air Resources Board, allows lower-income Californians to trade in polluting automobiles and receive vouchers toward an EV purchase. And now, thanks to SB 400, you can get a voucher for an e-bike purchase. Check out the program on your local Air Quality Control Board website to get the specifics for your area.
However, the SB 400 roll-out was delayed by the pandemic in 2020. In addition, unlike the electric car vouchers, the bike program is restricted to low-income people, and you have to have a qualifying car to turn in. We knew we needed to do more.
Monica delaCruz loves her e-bike!
E-bike subsidies work
Monica delaCruz used to get around San Diego on a bike she bought off craigslist or by arranging rides with friends. “I’m the type of person, I like to go out a lot, do arts things, political things,” she says. But she felt dependent on rides when she wanted to go further, so she ended up staying home more because it was too much effort to go out.
Buying an e-bike was not part of the plan for delaCruz because she assumed it was out of her price range. “I was not going to pay that much for a bike,” she says. But when she heard about a county program in San Diego that would give her an e-bike if she agreed to log her miles and share her trips, she jumped at the chance.
“I just feel like my radius around my house where I’m comfortable going for picking up dinner or meeting friends is bigger,” she says. “Weather doesn’t matter as much, terrain doesn’t matter as much.” She adds, “I feel like I’m way more connected to any place that I need to go in San Diego.”
One of the biggest changes was her commute to National City, which can take up to an hour with multiple transit connections. “Now, I can get to the more convenient transit station because I’m not worrying about going up and down the hill,” delaCruz says. She can take her e-bike on the trolley and ride to her office, cutting her commute down to 20 minutes.
She has also found solace on her bike. “Sometimes, in the middle of the day, if it’s not too hot, I’ll take a ride. For me it’s really relaxing,” she says. Some of her friends have e-bikes through the same program and they sometimes meet up and ride. “Now it’s more social and relaxed to go on a bike ride together when you’re not worried about being out of breath talking.”
Now, delaCruz would like to get another e-bike and a purchase incentive would make that much more possible for her.
With an electric boost, people ride more often and go farther by bike
As we ramped up our 2021 E-bike purchase incentive campaign, we asked CalBike members and supporters for their e-bike stories. Dozens of people wrote to tell us how an e-bike purchase had changed the way they get around.
Brian Cox uses his e-bike for a 20-mile commute from Placentia to Irvine. “I am not a recreational cyclist,” he says. “I ride my bike because it’s a reason to get to work. It’s a total transportation alternative for me.” He started bike commuting in 2007 as a way to get outside and get more exercise. But the e-bike reduced his commute time each way by a third and enables him to ride five days a week instead of two.
Brian Cox on his e-bike
He monitors his heart rate while he rides and finds it’s only 10 bpm less on the e-bike than on his classic bike. And studies have shown that riding e-bikes keep riders fit because they tend to ride longer distances and more often than they would have on a manual bike.
Cox rides a Class 3 e-bike with a top speed of 28 mph, which helps him feel safe sharing the road with cars. “They have a lot more opportunity to see me than if I’m going 10 and they’re going 40,” he says. “With people’s distractions, that little bit of time can be a lifesaver.”
As VP of Operations for Jax Bicycles, Cox didn’t have to buy his e-bike. It is his “company car,” owned by his employer, which also pays employees $3 a day for commuting to work by bike.
He has seen e-bike sales shoot up in the last five years at his stores. “My hope and dream is that people will start to recognize that they have an option to maybe ride their bicycle to work now that they’ve got an e-bike,” he says. He hopes that e-bike rebates will raise awareness about what’s possible.
Shannon encourages others to bike by posting her bike joy on Instagram.
Radical joy
In a huge victory for low-carbon transportation in California, CalBike secured $10 million in funding for e-bike purchase incentives. Unlike rebates or tax breaks, which require people to front the money for a purchase and get it back later, the program will give people credits that they can use to buy an e-bike. That makes the program useful and accessible to people who wouldn’t otherwise have the money to buy an e-bike.
When CARB launches the program in July 2022, it will put 10,000 or more new e-bikes on the road across California. Shannon and delaCruz give us a window into the impact that will have on people’s lives and their happiness.
“I think we need to change our idea about how we get from point a to point B,” delaCruz says. “This is how I get places. This is my form of transit.” She definitely rides more miles now that she has an e-bike.
She also thinks the e-bike revolution can change how we think about who bikes. “Everybody thinks of the bike commuter being the 2% body fat guy with lycra,” delaCruz says. “I’m fat, my friends are fat, and I’m seeing more people out with larger bodies. It’s beautiful. I love seeing it around town. And I love being seen too.” E-bikes take away the barrier of worrying about not being able to keep up on a bike or worrying about your fitness level.
Shannon uses her daily commute as a stress-reducer: “I’m outside, the wind is blowing through my hair, I can see birds. It’s pretty beautiful. I feel like Snow White or Mary Poppins,” she says. “I feel powerful when I’m on my bike. And free. And I hadn’t felt that in a long time. That’s pretty amazing.”
“It’s like you’re directly involved in life, instead of being in a little tube. It’s freedom, bottom line.”
– Erin Shannon
And she sees her e-bike as a wise investment. “This bike, when I got it, was the most expensive thing I’ve ever owned outright,” Shannon says. “It was terrifying. But then I thought about it and about how much less I would spend on gas in the car.” She adds, “And I feel like I’m contributing to the environment, not being one of those cars stuck in traffic.”
The benefits of CalBike’s e-bike program will extend beyond the people who will be able to afford new e-bikes. “More people experiencing their roads outside of their car can experience road safety in a different way,” delaCruz says. “I hope it brings safer roads for everybody.”
CalBike’s Snyder sees safety as a major benefit of the new e-bike affordability program. “We’ve seen data this year that shows there is safety in numbers for bike riders on the streets,” he says. “And we know that, when people see more e-bikes and see how much fun people are having, they’re going to want one too.” He’s also looking to the future. “Some European countries have recognized the importance of adding biking to the transportation mix with cash incentives for all types of bikes, or repairs or gear. We’d love to see California offer subsidies on every bike purchase, electric or classic.”
Californians need to drive less to mitigate the climate crisis, but we don’t always have convenient public transit options. E-bikes replaces car trips to school, work, and on errands. In fact, studies have shown that e-bikes are one of the best ways to liberate people from the burden of car travel. That’s why CalBike is campaigning hard for our $10 million e-bike affordability program.
When we asked for e-bike stories, many of you told us that your e-bikes have replaced car trips and, sometimes, allowed you to go car-free. Here are a few of those stories.
Matt Hill, San Francisco
I got my first e-bike almost four years ago, and it completely changed my life. I live in San Francisco with two kids, and I stopped driving completely. I never look for parking anymore, which is an amazing mental health benefit. The whole family spends much more time outside, which is great, and I get more exercise.
After about a year with the e-bike, I sold my car, which reduced our transportation costs significantly (maintenance, insurance, gas, parking, etc.). I almost never use a car anymore, except for road trips. I probably ride 25 miles per week.
This past year, I upgraded to an electric bakfiets, because our kids are getting bigger, and we got a dog. With the bigger e-cargo bike, I can haul tons of stuff. We do beach days by bike — carrying boogie boards, wetsuits, picnic supplies, the dog, chairs, etc. We also go crabbing on the municipal pier by bike. There’s pretty much nothing we can’t do in San Francisco by e-bike that we could do by car. It’s truly amazing.
Phil Hong, Torrance
My e-bike has made biking a dependable and desirable way to get around my neighborhood.
Walking doesn’t make sense in my suburban neighborhood because everything is at least 15-20 minutes away by foot. Manual biking was always an option but arriving sweaty at my destination was never appealing. My e-bike has given me the option to bike to meetings, the mailbox, grocery stores, hardware stores, and the local parks.
Wherever I go on my e-bike I arrive fresh and energized. Parking is easy because I just need to locate the nearest bike rack, railing, or pole. Whenever I can bike, the car stays at home. I play tennis at least twice per week, go to the grocery store twice per week, and visit my post office mailbox twice per week. I am averaging 25 miles per week on my e-bike.
My e-bike can travel 30 miles before needing to recharge and a full recharge costs less than $0.10. Compare that to $5-10 in my gas car for fuel and maintenance, and it’s easy to see how e-bikes can revolutionize life for many but especially lower-income families. My e-bike has made going places much more enjoyable and it has made the car a much less important part of my life.
Lisa Reinker, San Carlos
I love my e-bike! I ride it to work every day as well as running errands. It’s so much more versatile than a car, and I never have to worry about finding or paying for parking. In traffic, I’m often faster than the Teslas and it’s so much more relaxing than being behind the steering wheel.
I make sure to drive my car once weekly to keep the tires ok, but other than that, my e-bike has pretty much replaced my car.
E Lebel, Menlo Park
In about a year, my e-bike has traveled over 1500 miles, replacing about 15% of my annual car mileage. In a post-pandemic world where I will have more places to go around town, I suspect this number will increase.
Riding the bike is usually at worst the same time as driving and most times faster than driving if going anywhere in Menlo Park or Palo Alto.
Erik Hovland, Glendale
I recently purchased a used e-bike on a lark. Turns out that the majority of my biking and the majority of my under 5 mile trips are now made by e-bike. It has had a transformative effect on short commutes and work commutes. The major benefit is the certainty that if I take my e-bike to work, I will be there in about 30 minutes and I will be home in about 30 minutes. This vastly improves my daily life.
I now regularly use my e-bike to take short trips. My trips to the hardware store and the grocery store are almost exclusively by e-bike at this point.
Phoebe Ford, San Francisco
I moved to San Francisco in 2015, worked very long hours at a start-up, and spent a big part of my paycheck on rent for a tiny studio in the Mission. I started bike commuting then, a pretty flat ride into Soma. In 2016 I moved in with my husband, which meant moving up a hill. I immediately felt trapped — I dreaded going down for any reason because I’d have to bike or walk back up. My e-bike, purchased about 1 month after moving, transformed my relationship to that apartment and SF city biking overall.
On my ‘classic’ bike, I found excuses not to ride. A late night at the office? Uber. Rainy? BART. Groceries? Walking over to the corner store. With my e-bike, I ride more, I ride farther, and I carry more cargo. I’ve put over 2000 miles on my e-bike every year since I’ve owned it, mostly commuting, but also every other local trip — to the movies, to the grocery store, to yoga, even to Lowes. I rode it until the day I went into labor with my first child. After my son was born, my husband and I added an e-cargo bike so we could take him out with us. We chose a front bucket bike to fit an infant car seat, to keep him protected, and us on the move in the months before he could sit in a child bike seat.
I still don’t own a car. I read recently that the average car payment is $572/month and I honestly cannot imagine fitting that into our household budget — not with pre-school kids in childcare. And I wouldn’t want to– we’d miss out on all the fun we have because our daily trips are outdoors on a bike.
Mark Maxwell, Ventura
I love, love, love my e-bike! It has replaced my car for all my day-to-day activities, including my daily commute, shopping trips and recreation for the last three years. It’s is so much fun to ride. There is a certain thrill in the acceleration of an electric motor! I love my bike’s throttle.
I also feel safer on my electric bike, because I am able to choose routes that are the safest, often on side streets, or along bike paths, routes I wouldn’t have taken on my regular pedal bike as I would want to keep my route short and flat to conserve my own energy (and knees), and to save time. I used to ride my regular bike down the east end of Main St. in Ventura, an obnoxious six-lane commercial stretch full of freeway ramps, left and right turn pockets, a Target center and fast food stores. Just not a nice place to ride a bike. Now I ride my e-bike up and out of my way on mostly residential Loma Vista St., which is wide, has excellent bike lanes and is lightly travelled. I would never have gone up Loma Vista on my pedal bike.
When I do drive a car lately, I am reminded of all the many instances of frustration, anxiety, and road rages big and small which don’t really present themselves while I am riding my bike. Driving can be a drag, especially during daily commutes and running errands in commercial areas. On my bike, I’m just zipping along past all that stuff. I get in my car once a week, if that. I can’t tell you the last time I filled my gas tank.
Do you have a story about how e-bikes replace car trips in your life? Or perhaps you’d love to own an e-bike but the price is too steep without help from a plan like CalBike’s E-Bike Affordability Program? Tweet your e-bike story @CalBike or share it with us on Facebook using the hashtag #ebikestories.
Do you believe everyone deserves to be able to purchase an e-bike? Support CalBike’s campaign to create a $10 million e-bike afforadbility program. Sign our petition.
One of the main things that people use their cars for is running errands. Most of those trips are short enough to take by bike. When you add an electric boost, the remaining barriers melt away. When CalBike asked you to share e-bike stories to support our campaign for a $10 million e-bike affordability program, many of you told us how much you love running errands on an e-bike. Here are a few of those stories.
Eli Akira Kaufman, Los Angeles
In December, we welcomed a new member to our family [pictured in the featured image] and determined to expose our baby to the joy, health benefits, self-reliance, and sustainability of bicycling invested in an e-cargo bike. Of all the baby gear we’ve gotten, our e-bike is hands down the most essential to our health and happiness as a growing family.
We use our e-bike daily to get outside exercise, run errands around the neighborhood (especially trading baby items with our local https://buynothingproject.org/ group), and to stay connected with the people and places we love. We are replacing an average of 20 dreadful car miles with glorious bike miles per week and Gia is only eight weeks old!
Meghan Sahli-Wells (& Karim Sahli), Culver City
My husband and I bought e-bikes and consequently got rid of our car (we still have a minivan for work and camping). I had long been a bike commuter, but my husband had not. Our e-bikes have allowed us to go further, faster & have replaced all but a very small number of trips. We’ve been working from home, so our trips are mostly short ones to the grocery store, hardware store, doctor, etc. We’re saving money on insurance and gas, while boosting our health & the health of the planet.
It’s been transformational!
Sasha Kinney, Sacramento
I LOVE my e-bike. I use it in place of my car. Grocery trips, friends’ houses, bike rides for the hell of it all happen on my e-bike. I love the speed of it (20 mph), that I can coast, pedal or not pedal, and carry lots of stuff (I have a front basket, back rack, and a trailer if I need it). I am always recommending that family members and friends buy an e-bike for commuting.
I also use my e-bike for Mercy Pedalers, a non-profit that delivers goods to people experiencing homelessness. (photo attached). And I use it to go to the grocery store, which is a couple of miles from my house. I ride my bike about 10 miles a week.
Peter Spirer, Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles
My e-bike arrived in October. Since then I’ve ridden over 350 miles. I travel for light groceries food pickups and errands around town. I’ve cut the use of my car down to only a few days a week. One of the benefits of having an e-bike is that I’ve spent a third of what I used to on gas. I like to bike before but could not go down the hill and come up easily which the e-bike has made easy. I’ve replaced many of my trips with my e-bike. More people should be traveling by e-bike.
Maureen Persico, San Francisco
My car was destroyed by an uninsured driver. Decided to take a risk and put insurance money toward a top e-bike. I live in a city with lots of hills so I needed a dependable bike with a strong motor. My spouse agreed if I promised we’d buy a car later. Well, we’ve never looked back.
Been car-free for 10 years now. I get more exercise, and while people my age slowly gain weight I’ve been able to maintain my weight and health thanks to using a bicycle as my main method of transportation.
Buying my e-bike was a major step on a life transformation. I created a program with a non-profit where I packed and delivered by e-bike donated art supplies to schools and museums throughout San Francisco. I connected with bicycle and car-free activists on Twitter and we advocate and politically support bicycle infrastructure in the City.
I co-created People Protected (@PeopleProtected), which calls bicycle infrastructure advocates together to stand on the painted bike lane line to protect bicyclists from car traffic. It’s an idea that has spread to eight countries. I was honored by the San Francisco Bike Coalition and The New Wheel bike shop for this work. I’ve created #We Are Fragile art installations which I place on Slow Streets. All this because I bought an e-bike and ditched my car.
Do you have a story about running errands on an e-bike? Or riding on steep terrain, riding with age, or another tale of happy e-biking that you’d like to share? Tweet your e-bike story @CalBike or share it with us on Facebook using the hashtag #ebikestories.
Do you believe everyone deserves to be able to purchase an e-bike? Support CalBike’s campaign to create a $10 million e-bike afforadbility program. Sign our petition.
California has lots of hills; they are part of the landscape that makes our state so beautiful. When CalBike asked you to share e-bike stories to support our campaign for a $10 million e-bike affordability program, many of you told us how your e-bikes flatten hills, so you can ride on terrain that might have been too challenging on a manual bike. Here are four inspiring stories of how e-bikes flatten hills.
Kate Blumberg, Portrero Hill, San Francisco
I live at the top of Potrero Hill. I was riding my bike to work for years but I often dreaded coming home and I never left the house on bike unless it was going to be a long ride or a full day. I never got burritos or groceries on bike, mostly going without or driving.
When my son was born I realized that I just couldn’t bike him up the hill—the added weight was too much for me, and I started looking into e-bikes.
Riding home on my first e-bike I remember thinking, everyone in San Francisco should have one of these! I still, 10 years later, bike my son to school and aikido class. And I now also bike to the farmer’s market, grocery store, pizzeria, burrito shop, the best sushi restaurant and everything in between. I pretty much never get in the car unless my destination involves a highway (hiking, surfing and camping all mostly require the car). I definitely use the car less, and I’m happier. And my son is too (he also hates the car).
[I replace car trips with my e-bike] all the time – 25 miles a week or so. That’s lots of trips. The rest of the trips, if I didn’t have an e-bike I would take transit or walk.
Wesley Reutimann, Pasadena
Our household became a one-vehicle household in the suburbs of Los Angeles County about a decade ago, and purchased our first e-cargo bike after starting a family in 2015. In addition to saving on vehicle insurance, registration, maintenance, etc., the change has been a wonderful opportunity to explore southern California with our children on two wheels in a comfortable and safe manner. It’s also made visits to grandparents who live on the top of steep hill manageable with children on a bike. And e-cargo bikes are awesome at making cycling more comfortable on hot days in the inland valleys.
Pre-pandemic the average [on our e-bikes, replacing car trips] was 60-80 miles a week. We use the e-cargo bike to drop the kids off at school, run errands, do shopping around town, and go to local parks and trails.
Helena Worthen, North Berkeley Hills
After I got knee replacements four years ago followed by ablation surgery for A-fib (I am now 77), it was clear that it was time to get an electric bike.
On my first ride, from near Bay sea-level up to the edge of Tilden Park above Berkeley, the steepest hills turned into gentle rollers and all the pain just went away.
With saddlebags, I do all my shopping and anything else that happens between Richmond and downtown Oakland. I don’t try to be an athlete, I just use the full e-assist and enjoy it. Even just in the last four years, routes around the East Bay have gotten more and more marked and protected, making it more relaxing to ride.
I’d guess I ride 15 miles a week – not a lot, really but it’s all my grocery shopping, banking, and library trips. It’s not cardio but at least I’m moving around, so it has to be good.
Eventually, in order to travel out past the 40-mile battery range, we did buy a car, but we had at least three years of living car-free. Our car basically sits in front of the house unless it’s cold, raining hard and I really have to go somewhere. Currently, our car has only gone 2000 miles this last year, and most of that was one trip to LA.
Paola, Carmel
I have lived in Carmel Valley since 1965. I have been involved in county transportation issues at varying times since 1989 and am currently on the Carmel Valley Road Committee as spokesperson for bicyclists needs. I started riding to school in Monterey when I was fourteen. I have always ridden to do errands and for pleasure.
I researched e-bikes for a good fifteen years. In 2017, electric bikes had evolved sufficiently in range that I purchased one. At that time I was 56 years old, so I was tired of riding against the wind and dealing with the steep hills solely under my own power. While I do still need to use my car for certain things, I ride as often as possible.
Now, I have logged almost 8,000 miles doing errands locally since I purchased the bike. It is the way to go!
Monica de la Cruz, San Diego
My e-bike has made a world of difference, especially through the darkness and difficulties of the pandemic. I lost a very close friend and a family member in the fall of 2020, and between the immense grief and the isolation of working from home, I was really struggling. Regular bike rides became my method for coping. It’s still a difficult time, and I will not minimize mental health issues, but the rides afford me space to breathe, explore the city, feel wind and sunlight on my skin, take screen breaks, process, and feel a little lighter. Through this last year, that space has been essential. Nothing could convince me to trade my e-bike rides for a car commute.
Previously, the multi-legged transit ride to the office was too long to be a sustainable commute, and the length and incline were personally too challenging on a traditional bike, so I usually drove or worked from home.
My e-bike has cut out half of the transit trip so now I can work from the office on a routine basis, which has improved my work schedule. Thanks to my e-bike, I can live car-free, do just about any errand, and enjoy my city (even the hills). I ride about 30 miles a week on my e-bike.
Do you have a story about how e-bikes flatten hills in your neighborhood? Or commuting, running errands, riding with kids, or another tale of happy e-biking that you’d like to share? Tweet your e-bike story @CalBike or share it with us on Facebook using the hashtag #ebikestories.
Do you believe everyone deserves to be able to purchase an e-bike? Support CalBike’s campaign to create a $10 million e-bike afforadbility program. Sign our petition.
Commuting by e-bike is a breeze: the miles and the hills melt away and you arrive without breaking a sweat. When CalBike asked you to share e-bike stories to support our campaign for a $10 million e-bike affordability program, many of you told us how much you love your e-bike commutes. Here are four inspiring stories of e-bike commuting.
Erin Shannon aka Queenie, Bay Area
I was encouraged to invest in an eBike in late 2018. A Dear Friend and co-conspirator modified my bike to accommodate errand running and commutes with panniers and a basket. This eBike has substantially changed my life for the better.
The pedal-assist makes it easy breezy to go up hills, and roads that normally I would not have even tried are tackled with only a little effort. I recommend them to anyone who asks about it. I think everyone needs one! I was very out of shape and didn’t think I would ever find an exercise option that I loved doing, but this is it. I lost 35lbs with the initial 12-mile a day commute and I actually get a bit depressed if I am unable to get out and ride regularly.
I use my bike for commuting to and from work, weather and transit permitting. And for my grocery runs, most items will fit on that bike! I went from being super inactive and sitting hours in my car every day and hating it so much to the freedom of riding my bike easily to and from the ferry and BART and back. It was a total game-changer. Once I started riding my eBike I never looked back. I ride to commute to and from work and run errands, including some big grocery runs on the bike.
I never thought I could do this, I thought it was ridiculous to think I could ride a bike regularly, but with the pedal-assist on my eBike and all the extra custom features my friend added, this is a luxury commute/errand running bike and I would not trade it for the world. It is great for my mind and body.
I think you can safely say I am in a committed relationship with my eBike.
Jean Severinghaus, San Rafael
I rode my regular bike weekly from San Rafael to meetings in Berkeley and took my bike on the bus across the RSR Bridge. Great ride. That bus only goes hourly so I’d often wait up to an hour each way for the bus depending on my schedule.
However, when the RSR Bridge bike pathway opened, I could take my e-bike round trip without the bus time lag. So e-biking cut out the bus delay and even though it was a longer pedal, my days became much less time-consuming.
Peggy Arnest, Fresno
I used to live about 9 miles from work and would commute on my bike twice a week to work in downtown Fresno. However, we moved and my commute is now over 13 miles. It was just too far. I tried it a couple times, but it was exhausting and if the temperature was much over 90 degrees, which happens often in Fresno, I felt like I had a heatstroke by the time I got home. I purchased an electric bike and was back to commuting twice a week. I absolutely love it! I can vary the power to get the exercise I want or kick it up to high power when it is close to 100 degrees without getting too overheated. I used to not ride if it was too windy, but with the electric bike, you can barely tell there’s wind. :D
Jim Hilton
Igave my Subaru away and bought an e-bike just over a year ago. I ride 6.5 miles each way to work in the next town over. I’m lucky to have a trail a block from my home that leads me over the river, through the dairy land, to our business/industrial zone. I have rain gear and waterproof panniers and can ride right through winter (coastal living).
No car payments, insurance, oil changes. Better view of the world, mental health, and respect of my peers. Extra cash improves retirement prospects, about 5 years out. 25-minute commute vs. 12 in the car.
Do you have a story about commuting by e-bike? Or running errands, riding with kids, or another tale of happy e-biking that you’d like to share? Fill out this form or tweet your e-bike love @CalBike using the hashtag #ebikestories – or both!
Do you believe everyone deserves to be able to purchase an e-bike? Support CalBike’s campaign to create a $10 million e-bike afforadbility program. Sign our petition.
An electric bike can help us keep up with the pack as we age and ride with injuries or disabilities. CalBike is sponsoring a $10M e-bike affordability program to help more Californians get on e-bikes. E-bikes facilitate cycling for all ages and abilities.
Here are four stories of the ways that e-bikes have helped seniors and people with heath issues keep riding.
Tom Willging, Oakland
In December I turned 80 and for a present, I bought myself an e-bike. I don’t need its power assist to climb up the Oakland Hills. I’ve been climbing them once or twice a week since I moved to the Bay Area more than 10 years ago. I need the assist because in those last ten years my climbing pace has slowed to the point that I’m the last rider up the hills in my cycling club, the Oakland VeloRaptors.
Despite completing all five passes in the Sierra of the Death Ride in 2012, I’m no longer the 72-year-old spring chicken I was then. My riding group is mostly in their 60s and 70s and I find myself following their flashing red lights going up Oakland’s Old Tunnel Road on Sunday mornings.
For me, an e-bike is a great equalizer, extending my cycling in a way that I can continue to stop with my friends at the bakeries we frequent on the other side of the hills.
Shelley Reed
After my first knee replacements, no matter how I worked my quads, it was still painful to ride up even a gentle incline on my manual bike.
Before going on a month’s trip in an RV, planning to ride at many stops, I invested in [an e-bike] (24 gears and five battery settings, built for places like SF).
I make sure I’m always working, by setting the battery to the lowest setting and using most of the gears. The benefit is that the help the battery gives when I start up or go up a hill allows me to ride comfortably just about anywhere. I also maintain a speed at least a couple of miles faster than I could on my manual bike, and more than that when I’m riding into the wind.
I’ll never look back. Having had second replacements of my knees, plus other joints, I know I’d never be able to ride if I hadn’t bought the electric bike. With it, I’m still on the road at 75 and will be for years to come.
Jay Cobb, San Lorenzo
An e-bike is such a game-changer especially with someone like myself in their mid-60s that’s had a stroke and has multiple medical conditions and even eyesight issues. It’s so much fun to be on a bike that helps and just pushes you along when you need it. It keeps you engaged excited and energized like the battery on the bike since an e-bike and I have been riding together for almost 10 years it’s simple.
An e-bike is basically a Prius for your legs if you think about it. A Prius has an electric motor, it has a battery, and it has a regular motor. On an e-bike, you’re the motor, but like a Prius, the bike knows when to help you and when to save energy to get the longest ride possible. Most e-bikes made by major companies like Raleigh Trek specialized and so on can be found even locally where I live in the Bay Area for a little bit more than 1,000 to $1500. It gives you up to a 40-mile ride that is so nice and so natural that you need no training or experience to ride.
[The electric assist] helps you enjoy the ride even more and that’s what a bike is all about, no matter what your physical condition, no matter what your age. The e-bike helps you overcome anything you thought was an obstacle with ease.
The e-bike has helped me realize that I may be disabled but an e-bike re-ables me to think about life and my surroundings always in a positive way.
Always stay positive, always be moving forward, always make sure you’re having fun – that’s what an e-bike is all about. You’re always engaged and energized afterward; what a perfect machine even for the COVID…. still in the saddle.
Jane Raga, MD; Nevada City
The most important thing my e-bike has allowed me to do at 62 is to continue riding with my younger friends. Now I’m not a boat anchor–especially on the climbs–and I can hang with them for the distance and not be too painfully stiff to walk for three days after. I think this social benefit will become ever more important with age.
The benefits e-bikes can offer for mental health and staying connected with one’s community are every bit as important as the physical health benefits.
Do you have a story about how e-bikes allows cycling for all ages and abilities? Or commuting, running errands, or another tale of happy e-biking that you’d like to share? Fill out this form or tweet your e-bike love @CalBike using the hashtag #ebikestories – or both!
Do you believe everyone deserves to be able to purchase an e-bike? Support CalBike’s campaign to create a $10 million e-bike afforadbility program. Sign our petition.
https://www.calbike.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/IMG-0317-scaled-e1614912297738.jpg10681920Laura McCamyhttps://www.calbike.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/calbike-logo.pngLaura McCamy2021-03-04 18:55:342021-03-22 12:05:10#ebikestories Episode 2: Cycling for All Ages and Abilities
CalBike asked you to share your e-bike stories to support our campaign for a $10 million e-bike affordability program to enable more Californians to discover the joy and freedom that e-bikes bring. The stories you sent us were inspiring and delightful. Your e-bike experiences show the many ways that e-bikes can replace car trips and enhance people’s quality of life.
Here are three inspiring stories from parents who have found joy riding e-bikes with kids.
Emily Dondero, Murphys
I have always ridden a bike, a mountain bike, a road bike, and now a Pedego Cargo Baby Blue E-Bike. Like the children’s book, Pete the Cat and his Blue Shoes…I love my Blue Cargo E-Bike!
An added benefit to riding with my babies is teaching my girls about bike safety and riding. We practice listening, watching, safe bike riding skills, and encouraging bike riding in my community.
Riding an e-bike means more to me than just good health or exercise. I’m doing my part to promote a green planet.
Darren Huckle, Santa Cruz
My e-bike has been an incredible experience. I initially bought and installed a kit on I bike I already owned so I could more quickly do a 5-mile commute with my preschooler to his school. Four days a week for two years I rode two 10-mile round trips, so roughly 80 miles a week. My son and I had so much fun and bonding on those bike rides. We would stop at parks on the way home. It was an incredible quality of life boost for my physical and mental health to be exercising so regularly. I would barely have ridden him without the help of an e-bike. I was able to do the drop-off and pick-up trips without being overly sweaty, and almost as fast as if I had driven.
Ashley Lorden, Alameda
We wanted to use a bike to replace all our car trips within the beautiful and flat island where we live, Alameda, CA. My partner and I used to bike alone to commute or run errands, but anytime we needed to bring the kids, dog, groceries, or lots of stuff, we had to get in the car. We knew we could do better for these short and flat trips, but the alternative had to accommodate as much and be as easy to use, as a car.
Photo courtesy of Ashley Lorden
We had our eye on the Bunch Bike for a while but the $4k price tag is a commitment. Finally, 6 months ago, we purchased our family electric cargo bike (I call it “the minivan of bikes”!). It has been awesome! We bring our 2 kids to school, go to the park as a family, even pick up takeout or shopping. We still have our car but use it rarely, only for longer trips outside of our city. The Bunch is a joy to ride together, and the electric assist means we can better match car speeds on “shared-use” streets, where on a traditional bike it was scarier to frequently have cars speed around me when pulling the kids.
I’m so glad we took the leap to an electric cargo bike as our family vehicle. I hope we can create incentives and programs to help more people make the switch to low-footprint transportation.
Do you have a story about riding e-bikes with kids? Or commuting, running errands, or another tale of happy e-biking that you’d like to share? Fill out this form or tweet your e-bike love @CalBike using the hashtag #ebikestories – or both!
Do you believe everyone deserves to be able to purchase an e-bike? Support CalBike’s campaign to create a $10 million e-bike afforadbility program. Sign our petition.
