Page 18 THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – Friday, May 17, 2019 MassBike hosts electric bicycle demo day at the State House B OSTON–On Thursday, May 16, the Massachusetts Bicycle Coalition (MassBike), in partnership with Mass. lawmakers, hosted an electric bicycle (e-bike) informational briefing and demo day at the Massachusetts State House to encourage people to try an e-bike while learning about MassBike’s efforts to pass sensible legislation about this developing technology. State Rep. Jonathan Hecht, State Rep Dylan Fernandes and State Sen. Sal DiDomenico sponsored bills (S.2071/H.3014) to differentiate e-bikes and motorized bicycles. At this free and open to the Spring Clean Up 2019 public event on Beacon Hill, manufacturers and providers— Lime, Giant Bicycles, Specialized Bicycles, Gotcha, GeoOrbital, and Superpedestrian— provided e-bikes for people to test out with helmets provided by Bern Unlimited. In recent years, e-bikes usage increased rapidly, and has become the fastest growing type of bicycles sold by local retailers. While e-bikes have existed for years, recent advances in technology have allowed batteries to become smaller, lighter, cheaper, and longer range, enhancing the usefulness, appeal, and affordability of these machines. E-bikes appeal to many types of people, particularly for those who use them as a tool to overcome limited physical fitness, for people running everyday errands while carrying heavier loads, and for parents transporting children. Yet Massachusetts state law does not have clear definitions as to exactly what these bicycles are categorized as and where they can be ridden; current statute confuses electric bicycles with gas-powered mopeds that are regulated by the size of their gas engines. "We are seeing a dramatic increase in e-bike sales and ridership throughout the commonwealth, from commuters riding to work, to families in cargo bikes with kids being hauled to school, to aging riders on the bike path just going out for exercise and ice cream," said Galen Mook, Executive Director of MassBike. "This bill will help clarify the status of electric bicycles and make them distinct from other motorized bikes like mopeds, and will allow jurisdictions to create sensible regulations for where e-bikes should be ridden." "Lime fully supports clarifying the definition of electric bikes, like Lime’s pedal-assist e-bikes, so that everyone in the Commonwealth has access to affordable, green transportation options. By formally defining electric bikes, more communities will be able to hop on bike share programs, easing Massachusetts’s congestion with reliable firstand-last mile transit options,” said Scott Mullen, Director of Northeast Expansion at Lime. MassBike proposes to upSome of the volunteers who spent Saturday during the Spring Clean Up campaign. The mayor thanks all who supported this great effort. The turnout was excellent, according to the mayor. date Massachusetts’ current e-bike law to differentiate between low-speed and higher-speed electric bicycles, and e-bikes with pedal-assist and throttle activated motors. While regulatory control would remain with the jurisdictions, landowners, and departments, MassBike suggests– absent of local prohibitions– low-speed electric bicycles be treated like regular bicycles, while higher-speed e-bikes would have additional safety requirements including a speedometer, the driver to wear a helmet, and a driver's license. The same rules of the road would apply to both e-bikes and human-powered bicycles when it comes to speed, proper passing, following all traffic laws, obeying posted speed limits, and other state and local ordinances. “E-bikes present a clean, sustainable, and accessible transportation alternative. They will help reduce our carbon emissions, ease congestion in our cities and towns, and realign our transportation systems,” says Representative Dylan Fernandes. “During National Bike to Work Week and Bay State Bike Week, we want to raise awareness of these small changes that can have profound impacts.” “It’s great to see the energy coming from the cycling community on our electric bike legislation, as we look to add more mobility options for our residents,” noted Senator Sal DiDomenico. “I am confident that legislation like this will help ease congestion and make last-mile connections to public transportation more viable for residents in my district and throughout the commonwealth.” “We are facing levels of congestion that threaten our economic vitality and levels of transportation emissions that threaten our health and environment. E-bikes are an innovative, agile, low-carbon answer to these challenges,” said Hecht. For further information on MassBike, electric bicycles, and the full text of the bill visit massbike.org/ebikes Since last year, in partnership with the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC), Lime has provided dock-free regular pedal and pedal-assist electric bike-share services to several participating communities in Metro Boston, including Arlington, Bedford, Belmont, Chelsea, Everett, Malden, Melrose, Needham, Newton, Watertown, and Winthrop. Lime also launched in Quincy in August separate from the MAPC agreement. Since April 2018, Lime has recorded over 300,000 rides.
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