IN THE NEWS
” Pedego Electric Bikes – Driven solutions
” Life Cycle
” Why are e-bikes all the rage? Because they’re plenty of fun to ride.
” I Sing the Bike Electric
New program to get city staff on ebikes
CBC reports from Nelson, British Columbia, that local city employees will now have the chance to buy an electric bike through work, and then gradually pay back the cost with regular deductions from their paychecks.
Nelson (coincidentally the headquarters of Pedego Electric Bikes Canada) is famous for its steep hills, beautiful scenery and highly active population. Thirty-one percent of its residents commute to work by cycling or walking.
The City of Nelson will introduce the scheme for employees this spring to encourage its staff to commute using the motor-assisted bicycles.
“Nelson is very hilly so e-bikes are an excellent option for this part of the world.”
Councillor Jesse Woodward summed up the reasons why electric bikes are so popular, as well as mentioning the lack of parking in downtown Nelson.
City planner Alex Thumm said he’s been enjoying riding his Pedego City Commuter to work even when it’s been cold outside.
“A lot of times it’s faster than driving between home and work,” Thumm told CBC’s Bob Keating.
“I love it. I feel way better. The fresh air in the morning, it wakes you up. It’s a myth that you don’t get any exercise when you’re on an electric bike. You actually do pedal.”
Victoria eyes e-bikes for city staff
CTV News Vancouver Island has reported that the Mayor of Victoria Lisa Helps wants a program to get staff onto electric bikes, similar to a new program in Nelson, British Columbia.
Helps told CTV that she’s already sent plan, recently announced by the City of Nelson, to her staff to consider.
The city of Victoria already owns three e-bikes that employees can book to travel to and from city meetings or events.
The Mayor is interested in a program recently announced in Nelson where staff will be able to buy an electric bike through the city and pay it back in regular deductions from their paycheck.
Smiling City of Victoria employee Charlotte Wain sits atop one of city hall’s three e-bikes that staff can book to travel to meetings. April 2, 2019. (CTV Vancouver Island)
Pedego launches Patroller electric bike
Blue Line, Canada’s national law enforcement magazine, has featured the new Pedego Patroller electric bike.
The Pedego Patroller recently launched in the US is now available in Canada.
The article describes it as a“high-performance electric mountain bike designed to empower law enforcement, security and safety personnel as they protect and serve.”
CBC Report: Calgary Getting eBike Sharing Service
The CBC has reported that Calgary plans to bring in a city-wide electric bike sharing service this week owned by U.S. company Lime. It joins a handful of similar electric bicycle offerings in Canada, including one in Montreal that runs under the Bixi brand.
The difference between Lime and Bixi is that the 375 Lime ebikes will be dockless, meaning once a customer has finished a ride, they can leave the self-locking bike anywhere within the home area, whether on the sidewalk, a parking garage, etc. It’s then available for another user to rent by the minute. The whole model is similar to Car2Go in that a mobile app is required to determine the ebike’s location and then to unlock it.
The CBC goes on to quote Scott Harvey, Lime’s operations manager for Calgary, who spoke of his “commitment to reducing barriers for active modes of transportation and are looking forward to helping empower Calgarians with this greener, more efficient, and affordable transportation options.
After reading the CBC story, a friend called us here at Pedego Canada to ask us our thoughts about the electric bike sharing services. We only had one thing to say: They’re great!
Some might assume that services such as Lime and Bixi are disruptive to our business model but in fact it’s the complete opposite. Our goal is to get more people out of cars and off their couches and riding electric bikes. And Lime and Bixi do exactly that.
Tourists to Calgary and even residents will now have the opportunity to experience how much fun electric bicycles actually are and they only have to rent by the minute to do it. Of course, if you’re planning on spending an hour or more on the ebike, we suggest you rent one at Pedego Calgary because it will be cheaper and there’s more variety to choose from. Likewise, if you’re going to use the dockless ebikes regularly, we recommend you purchase your own electric bike from Pedego Calgary.
Vancouver is the next Canadian city that’s looking at an electric bike sharing service and Victoria may not be far behind. For residents and visitors to those cities, we encourage you to enjoy taking those electric bikes for a spin to see how much fun they are. But again, if you’re planning on a trip longer than an hour, consider renting electric bikes instead at Pedego Vancouver and Pedego Victoria.
Alternatively, drop into the stores and enjoy free test rides and chat with the owners and staff about what makes a great ebike. You may find that you like them so much, you need to have one of your own.
No matter what you decide, though, we guarantee you’re going to have fun.