The safety organisation VeiligheidNL estimates that 5,000 fatbike riders are treated in A&E [ i.e Accident & Emergency] departments each year, on the basis of a recent sample of hospitals. “And we also see that especially these young people aged from 12 to 15 have the most accidents,” said the spokesperson Tom de Beus.
Now Amsterdam’s head of transport, Melanie van der Horst, has said “unorthodox measures” are needed and has announced that she will ban these heavy electric bikes from city parks, starting in the Vondelpark. Like the city of Enschede, which is also drawing up a city centre ban, she is acting on a stream of requests “begging me to ban the fatbikes”.
Don’t ban them, just make them register as electric motorcycles. Which is a market that could do with more choices…
Electric motorcycles are not allowed on bike paths and parks. Which means they have to go faster so they can be on roads. Throttle control ebikes are right in that grey area of motorized in pedestrian areas that we should not have.
I think a big part of the reason these sell so well is because you don’t need a license (like other bikes) and also don’t need a helmet. I totally agree these are more like mopeds, scooters and motorcycles; but the current regulations makes these bikes accessible to a group that has no access to the other types.
Want to ride around on a moped without having the responsibilities of a moped driver? Get an electric moped, because for reasons, that counts as a bicycle.
It’s ridiculous that we even arrived in such a situation.
Even more ridiculous is that looks like we’ll remain in this situation for the foreseeable future.