6 ms·

Yeah, laws about the lightweight end of the spectrum in powered transportation came into being when we were talking about noisy, polluting two-strokes. They ma

• yaur 10y ago
  Having these things silently blasting down the sidewalk at 20+ mph is incredibly dangerous.
  • mapt 10y ago
    People can bicycle at 20mph too using their legs. On paths and lanes where these things are banned. Common sense wattage restrictions (I have seen 1hp or 750W as a threshold, for example, and apparently parts of Europe do 250W limits) are perfectly feasible. Apparently federal law on imports dictates that the class of 'low-speed electric bicycles' is defined by a maximum of 750W and 20mph, which is a surprisingly appropriate envelope - about as much as you'd want out of a single-rider passenger bicycle with a heavy rider or cargo in a hilly city. * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_bicycle_laws#Defined https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_bicycle_laws#Defined * http://www.alysion.org/ebiketours/power.html http://www.alysion.org/ebiketours/power.html
    • masklinn 10y ago
      > apparently parts of Europe do 250W limits That's part of the EU recommendation for classification as an assisted bicycle (pedelec) rather than an electric moped (e-bike): 250W maximum continuous rated power, assistance-only (user must be pedalling for engine to engage) and progressive cutoff to 25km/h[0] (so the cutoff starts earlier, at 25km/h or above there's no assistance) [0] ~16mph