Wednesday, October 13, 2010

China’s Love Affair With The E-Bike


bikes-in-china

Shanghai, China — China is considered to be the world’s bicycle kingdom , because one of every three inhabitants rides a bicycle.
And more and more of them are riding e-bikes, from workers tired of jam-packed public transport, to those tired of pedaling long distances to work. Even some who can afford cars are takig to ebikes to avoid traffic jams and expensive gasoline.
Thirty years ago, practically no one in China owned a car and bicycling was the only way to get around. Today, it still has 430 million bicycles by government count, outnumbering electric bikes and scooters 7-1.
But production of the electric two-wheelers has increased from fewer than 200,000 eight years ago to 22 million last year, mostly for the domestic market. The industry estimates about 65 million are on Chinese roads.