Opinion: Power and Speed of E-Bikes in Tasmania

The Tasmanian state government is considering updating e-bike rules and increasing power limits.

As a Tasmanian who has spent a bit of time owning, researching, and riding e-bikes, current legislation is too restrictive. Existing rules have been copied from old European standards which are unsuitable for Australian cities, and are outdated, failing to consider new e-bike uses such as cargo bikes.

The Essentials

No limit or higher limit (750 to 1000 W) on e-bike power. Already no limits on cars and e-scooters.
Better for cargo bikes, families, mountain bikers and those riding in city traffic.
More power means more transport uses, reducing city traffic. Drivers happy.
The current 25 km/h speed limit is good for pedestrian areas, but unsafe in traffic.
A higher 40 km/h speed limit allows e-bikes to keep up with traffic. Safer for cyclists in traffic.
Making these reasonable changes means less risk. Police can focus on important work, insurance coverage still works, no unfair liability for those using e-bikes safely.

Power of e-bike motors

Power limits should be removed from e-bikes altogether, or increased substantially (to 750-1000 W). There are a number of legitimate reasons for appropriately powered e-bike motors.

Examples where power matters

Cargo bikes. These reduce city traffic and parking issues. Spidertech, a locally owned and operated business, have been in the news several times for their decision to use cargo e-bikes to attend city worksites. Appropriately powered motors help businesses such as Spidertech choose these transport options more often, improving business efficiency and reducing the use of large vehicle traffic in city streets, and freeing up parking for consumers.
Moving families. Cargo bikes are often used to carry small families, largely during peak traffic times such as for school drop-off and pickup. I have a family member who transports three children (up to age 11) on one cargo e-bike. Again, people who choose to do this reduce city traffic, congestion and parking issues, particularly around schools and during peak times. Appropriate power can counter the added weight of children, making ascending hills feasible, with the benefit of improved transport flow for non-cyclists.
Hilly streets. Hobart and Launceston are hilly cities. 250 W motors are not designed for this. As an extreme example, mountain bikers who wish to ride uphill before descending trails such as those on kunanyi / Mt Wellington require a lot more power than a normal cyclist. While middle range powers, such as a 500 W motor might be able to go up the mountain, there is an increased chance of motor burnout when using motors at their peak output for an extended period of time. Overpowering a motor – ideally 1000 W – allows mountain bikers to ascend for long periods of time with significantly reduced heat and wear, and no chance of a motor burning out or catching fire. This is not the case with a 500 W motor. Again, bike riders who chose to ascend and descend mountain roads on their e-bikes reduce traffic on busy and constricted roads such as kunanyi / Mt Wellington. The alternative is a car shuffle – driving two trips, both up and down these roads, per descent. Reducing this avoidable traffic benefits all road users, and a reduction in cars delays the need to implement costly traffic solutions or restrictions.

Power and safety

Power is not a safety factor on e-bikes. There is no wattage restriction on e-scooters or cars – this is because power isn’t related to safety in the way speed is, and not all e-bikers ride on flat inner-city roads. A power limit is not suitable for e-bikes.

Stop-start city traffic also appreciates faster acceleration times from cyclists who have been caught by red lights, and generally allows traffic to flow from lights faster. Appropriate powered e-bikes allow this. Again, this is good for all road users, not just cyclists.

A woman wearing a helmet rides an electric bicycle along a street past a parked car

Speed — safer options

A two-tier speed system for e-bikes will improve safety for cyclists. This makes more sense than the current blanket limit. The current 25 km/h restriction on e-bikes is equal lowest in the world, despite Australians having large distances to travel. 25 km/h is suitable for paths shared with pedestrians. 40 km/h is more suitable for riding in traffic.

An upper pedal assisted speed of 40 km/h on roads will allow for riders to flow with city traffic. Riding slowly in city traffic is dangerous for cyclists, and unpleasant for motorists. Interactions between cars and cyclists increase when cars are presented with slower cyclists, as they attempt dangerous overtaking manoeuvres. An upper limit of 25 km/h does not allow e-bikers to flow with traffic, where 40 km/h would. A lot of the danger for cyclists on city roads could be avoided if e-bike laws would assist riders to keep up with slow moving car traffic.

Is 40 km/h safe on a bike? Yes. Bikes and safety gear are designed for these speeds. Unpowered road cyclists and commuters routinely travel at 40 km on flat paths. Going downhill can easily take cyclists upwards of 60 km/h. The risks from cars are much higher than the slightly increased speeds on suitable infrastructure proposed.

Why update the laws?

It is important that laws rules are suitable for e-bike usage. Poorly aligned rules limit people’s transport options, increasing car traffic and reliance – bad for everyone.

Minor civil disobedience is an unpleasant but likely consequence of too heavy restrictions on e-bikes. Choosing to ride a suitable e-bike for legitimate reasons, but which does not fit current restrictive laws, can have much more serious outcomes than wasted police resources and fines. Liability and insurance issues can arise when laws are more restrictive than reasonable use. Appropriate updates to e-bike laws will mean those who seek use e-bikes for everyday tasks such as taking children to school, running a business in town, mountain biking, or wanting to ride safely in traffic are not gambling legally and financially for unlikely incidents that may occur.