Posted Jun 10, 2010 7:11 PM

I'm down here visiting a friend in Niagara Falls for the month of June. I'm helping him out in his bookstore in St. Catharines. Wow St Catharines is e-bike heaven! I've seen more e-bikes in one week than a whole year in Ottawa! Maybe I should move here. Anyway I would like to meet up towards the end of June before I head back to Ottawa.
John

Interesting to hear this John. Why do you think this is? Do you notice any particular demographic riding them? Are there a lot of retirees in St.Catharines maybe? Just a smaller town where distances are short? One local seller that been doing well? Are you seeing mostly scooter-style?

tks
Lock

Oddly enough I've sold 4 e-motor kits so far in June to people in St. Catharines (2 with recumbents, one a BMX and one a Norco MTB).

I think Niagara on the Lake is the best place for e-biking with all the parkland available. You can now take e-bikes free (not e-scooters) on the Choo Choo train that runs between Toronto and Niagara on the Lake. I know the cycling group who pushed for the service and the idea is you go down in the morning, ride all day and train back in the evening.

There is also the 77 KM McMaster University to the Elora Gorge bike rail trail that goes through Brantord and Cambridge.

The ones I have been seeing are primarily scooter style. The main reason is an economic recession in the city. Although the public transit system is good, alot of people use e-bikes to cover the shorter distances, park them at or near the bus terminal, so they can visit or commute to Toronto/Hamilton.

Recession is the reason I've heard as well as the motivator for St. Kits. One chap I sold a motor kit to rides with others on e-bikes and e-scooters (all were let go from the same auto plant or took early retirement) and in summer when gasoline prices traditionly go up they switch to Electric.

Several e-bike stores opened in Windsor. Same deal re: former auto workers parking the car and getting e-bikes/e-scooters.

Hmmmm Oshawa (GM country) has an E-Scooter Group don't they?

Hopefully this is no longer in effect but Toyota in Cambridge 2 summers ago threatened to fire any employee who showed up for work riding an e-bike or e-scooter. Seems Toyota sees e-bikes as a threat to Auto sales. I think the logic is if you see Toyota employees on e-bikes you might think they are on e-bikes because they know something is wrong with the Cars they make. A bit ironic now considering all the Toyota cars in Recall.

GM in Oshawa apparently refused to allow their employees to park their Cars and Pick Up trucks in GM Parking Lots unless the car/truck they drove was made by GM. Seems some media reporter pointed out the GM employee parking lots were filled with cars and trucks made by every company except GM and GM had a Bird over that report.

GM also Lobbied Against E-Bikes becoming Legal in Ontario.

Buzz (Basil) Hargrove, the then Head of the CAW said e-bikes were the work of Satan and should be Banned in Ontario.