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What feels like a life update: I got an e-bike! I am continually blown away at the ways it’s changing my bike behavior, even as someone who bikes a lot. Some initial reflections from 2 months in 
Context: my household does not own a car
Context: my household does not own a car
The best part is how much more fun biking feels - the e-assist takes away the work part and leaves the fun part
I feel this the most on routes with big hills that felt like a deal breaker. Ever done that climb up Franklin over the Shakespeare bridge? It’s brutal and stressful because you go slow and cars get right behind you. Now, that motor powers me up and gives me confidence
The assist really gives me extra confidence on taking the lane in non bike lane situations (all too common in LA) because I’m going more so the speed of cars
Also means that when my husband and I bike together, I’m less worried about him going faster than me. Way easier to keep at the same speed (although now he wants his own ebike)
Also got to change from buying heavy stuff in stores that I was having delivered. Heavy cat litter, no problem! This is a combination of the e-assist and front rack that does serious work on any and all errand runs
Love to see California rebates for women to purchase e-bikes as a strategy to increase cycling among women. Obviously there’s a lot of barriers beyond the bike, but in a short time I’ve seen how much more I want to go out and ride for utilitarian and recreational trips
I don’t know the ins and outs of how this would be done - but the number one lesson from electric vehicle rebates is that it must first reach people of color and low income families before CA subsidizes purchases for wealthy households
TL;dr e-bikes seriously are amazing and I hope to see them available to people who could use a real mobility and access to opportunity boost in LA and California
