The following received today from Warren at the Durham Association.

http://ebikernetwork....

I have to say, I'm kind of getting nervous about this...anyone else have some thoughts? I'm curious which one is the "crazy counsellor" from Guelph ( I think we have a few...), and I'm curious if she is "for" or "against". Guelph is known as a pretty civilized town when it comes to things "eco", so I'm just curious.

Anyway, anyone else have some juicy gossip? I had a person come up to me at work saying they read an article that I would need to have a license and insurance after the 9th... I was like "thanks" :( andrea

I have to say, I'm kind of getting nervous about this...anyone else have some thoughts? I'm curious which one is the "crazy counsellor" from Guelph ( I think we have a few...), and I'm curious if she is "for" or "against". Guelph is known as a pretty civilized town when it comes to things "eco", so I'm just curious.

Anyway, anyone else have some juicy gossip? I had a person come up to me at work saying they read an article that I would need to have a license and insurance after the 9th... I was like "thanks" :( andrea

Ontario would be falling extremely behind other proviences if it made e-scooters illegal. If the law does change I think we should all go down to Queens Park to lobby for the same ebike laws as British Columbia. In BC they call the scooter style ebikes MACs (or Motor Assisted Cycles). I want everyone here to take a look at the BC laws on this page http://www.icbc.com/r... and post your opinions. Also Alberta now has laws virtually the same as BC and so does Quebec.

Also the info on this page mentions laws for other Canadian Proviences http://en.wikipedia.o...

EDIT: The Wiki page says that ebikes in Alberta have a weight limit. The law was recently changed there is NO LONGER a weight limit.

-Vic

My husband had a good point as well...if a e-bike (scooter style) becomes the same as a LSM with a max speed of 50km/hr, is there a way to remove the governor from the ebike so that it can achieve that top speed? Personally, I think it would be a huge disadvantage to only be able to go 32 km/hr, and if you no longer have the option of riding in the bike lanes, a potentially dangerous venture...does it then make our bikes obsolete?

I think it would be ridiculous of Ontario to not follow the suit of some of the other provinces, yet I do think sometimes Ontario has a mind of its own, and may not see that argument as sound when the time comes. Hoping for option 1 though! andrea

Even if the governer was removed you wouldn't get anything more than 40 KM/hr. At least not without making major modifications on the bike. New controller and more batteries. Ken Finch knows a little better about this than me. Just want to add that I haven't modified my bike in any way.

I haven't modified my bike either, my brother swears he knows how to do it, and add battery power, etc. yet I find myself quite happy with the 32km/hr. I just think if the pilot project doesn't go through, and I"m forced to go to lengths of getting a scooter license, etc, then I really just have a fairly expensive hunk of metal in my garage. I use my bike in place of a second car to get to work, and I'm lucky because on the busy roads there are bike lanes. If I can no longer ride in those, or go the speed of traffic, I see that being a big problem. Oh well, here's hopin they just get on board with this thing!! andrea

It is hard to imagine that the Ontario Government could be so out of touch with what the other Provinces have already done. The implications to the current owners of e-bikes, should they then require a license, would basically render them cost prohibitive because the cost to purchase and operate one would not make any sense.

Since I own an EVT 168 which is classified as an LSM I have a very clear picture of the actual real cost to own and operate an LSM. The EVT 168 has a 1500 W motor which in real world conditions basically matches the performance of a 50cc gas scooter. An e-bike with a 500 W motor at best will get you to a top speed of 40k and will not be able to maintain speed on any kind of hill. The cost to mod an e-bike to the level of an LSM would simply be to high to make it worthwhile.

What is the cost of insurance for your EVT?

And while you're at it, what are the other costs of your EVT?

Basically the cost of operating an EVT is very much like operating a 50cc scooter minus the gas and maintinance/service costs.

1 - You need to have a Motorcycle or (Limited Speed Motorcycle) license.

2- Insurance - Of course there are a number of factors that will affect your insurance rate, ie.......... Age of driver, years of driving experience, other vehicle insurance (combined with car insurance for example). Still all being said if you shop around and get a number of quotes you should be able to get insured for around $500 a year or maybe less.

3 - Vehicle license and plates


Currently the reason why electric motorcycles/scooters are still not that popular is because of the purchase cost and range verses a gas powered scooter. You can purchase a good quality brand gas scooter for the same or even less than an electric and not have to worry about how far you have travelled or where you can plug-in and now with gas prices lower (for the moment anyway) and the small amount that a scooter would burn the cost of gas is very low.


Now the things that I like about the EVT

1 - Runs almost totally silent
2- Has excellent excelleration
3- Is a well built bike (believe me, when you ride at speeds of 60 to 65k you need a properly built bike -- most e-bikes would not be able to handle it)
4 - zero carbon emissions (please note that I am not factoring in carbon emissions during the manufacturing process, or the source of the plug-in electricity)