For the last few days I have been looking at getting an ebike. Cost of a new ebike starts at about $1,000 and goes up to $5,000 and higher. What started me think about an ebike was the following:
Car side of the issue
Most of my trips are under five miles in the
city I live.
Cost of up keep on my car is not a lot in the big picture it does add up. Traveling less than five miles is not a good use of gas. Traveling farther equals better gas mileage.
Gas, oil, fluids and other parts are not likely to go down in price.
Ebike side of the issue
Many ebikes can get up to 30 mph.
Range of an ebike can be as great as 70 to 100 miles. (The drawback is how you ride and what you ride on for instance hills vs flat
land.)
As of October 2021 ebikes are treated like a bike not like a car or truck. So taxing, insurance, etc. is different from a car. And I feel this could help save a little money.
Jacob Lund Fisker of ERE (
https://earlyretirementextreme.com/ )and Mr. Money Mustache (
https://www.mrmoneymustache.com/ ) write about using a bike. I see that Mr. Money Mustache has a few articles about bikes. And I will read them soon.
Have you used an ebike as a daily commuting vehicle or to do errands? Has it been a positive in your life? I know there are cargo bikes and I feel that an ebike would make a good cargo bike. What have you hauled on your ebike?
Note: Not everything in Kansas is flat! Kansas does have Mount Sunflower and the Flint Hills.
3
