Lot's of e-bikes in Japan. The only problem, from a powered-commute perspective is that they have a graded assist limit. I think between 12 and 20 kph, the as

Lot's of e-bikes in Japan. The only problem, from a powered-commute perspective is that they have a graded assist limit. I think between 12 and 20 kph, the assist gradually decreases. At 12 kph you have 100% assist and you don't have to pedal. It then declines until at 20 kph it's all you. (I don't really remember the actual numbers, but those are pretty close). The problem is that 20 kph is really slow. Even into the steady headwinds we have on the coast here, I never travel below this speed, so an e-bike just means a heavy bike for me :-) However, they have revolutionised transportation for the elderly in the countryside. In my town, almost everybody has one. It's really great because it gets people outside and going to shops, etc. There are now a few electric scooters (classed differently in Japan than bikes). These have a 30 kmh legal speed limit, but they are not physically limited (many, many people drive over the speed limit on these). You need a drivers license to drive these (there is also a special scooter license you can apply for which is easier to get than a general purpose drivers license). The last category is motorcycle and I haven't seen any electric ones on the road yet, but I'm sure it's a matter of time. Honestly I'd love something like this for going places I wouldn't want to go on my bicycle. As much as I find it annoying, the categorisation makes a lot of sense to me. Limit unlicensed transport to minor assist only. Put a speed limit on full assist and require a license. Require a full motorcycle license on general transportation that is intended to travel at highway speeds. It's a bit strange to legally be allowed to ride my bike at 40+ kph just because I'm able to do so, though... I just hope nobody changes that law ;-)