Alarming e-bike delivery rider behaviour revealed in new study
It seems hardly a day goes by without a serious e-bike accident. Now it’s been revealed just how bad the issue has become.
E-bikes have become the hottest new form of eco-transport, particularly among young people and food delivery riders.
They’re fun, fast, fashionable and relatively affordable.
But their rapid rise has also led to a surge in serious injuries and even death.
A new Monash University study, funded by the Victorian Automotive Chamber of Commerce (VACC), has revealed alarming levels of non-compliant e-bikes among commercial delivery riders in Australia.
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VACC CEO Peter Jones said there had been little to no data to reflect the growing concerns Australians were witnessing with the surge in e-bikes, which was why the organisation decided to fund the report.
“We looked to partner with a credible organisation to collect data so that we can make representations to government and regulators that it’s more than just ‘I almost got run over by an e-bike in the city’,” he said.
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The reports, which monitored more than 27,000 two-wheeled vehicles across eight high-traffic sites in Melbourne, found that nearly half (47 per cent) were delivery e-bikes.
What is more concerning is that only 4 per cent of delivery riders were observed pedalling. This implies that many of the e-bikes observed have likely been illegally modified to operate using a throttle.
Peter Jones believes these findings indicate that e-bikes are being misrepresented as motorcycles, rather than e-bikes, and encourages all governments to implement clearer regulations urgently.
“This report confirms what riders, pedestrians, and other road users have suspected – many of these delivery e-bikes are operating as unregistered motorbikes, without the safeguards or enforcement that applies to other vehicles,” Mr Jones said.
“We need consistent standards, proper compliance checks, and enforcement in known hotspots to keep all road users safe.”
In addition to the majority of delivery bike riders observed not pedalling, the report also found speeds up to 54 km/h were recorded, with almost one in five exceeding 25 km/h; at some sites, this rose to one in three.
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In most states and territories, e-bikes are classified as ‘pedal-assisted cycles’ and must comply with the European Standard for Power-Assisted Pedal Cycles (EN15194).
This standard typically limits the power from the electric motor to 250W and mandates that the motor stop propelling the bike when the speed reaches 25 km/h.
Any bike that exceeds that limit, or can be propelled without pedalling, is considered illegal on public roads.
“In our survey, we found one with the maximum speed of 54 km/h. When it’s 54 km an hour, it’s a motorbike, it’s not an e-bike,” Peter said.
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“Now, of course, they can actually go faster because if you’re going downhill, a normal bike should go faster than 25 km per hour.
“But what we were observing is that they were doing that without pedalling, which means they’re under the throttle.”
The findings come after police in Victoria and NSW launched a major enforcement blitzes on unsafe and illegal e-bike across Melbourne and Sydney, following a spike in accidents. Additionally, the Queensland state government is also considering a total ban on e-scooters and e-bikes.
The news of the chance of a total ban on e-bikes comes after a 14-year-old boy died in an e-bike accident in Sydney last month.
Mohammed Mahid Younes was killed when he crashed while riding his new e-bike in the southern Sydney suburb of Arncliffe.
The tragic accident served as a stark reminder of the dangers associated with e-bikes.
“I know my son is kind of a statistic at the moment,” Mohammed’s mother, Joanne Younes told The Saturday Telegraph.
While the dangers of e-bikes are already a major concern for many, the VACC is urging all levels of government to enhance the regulation of these devices and to develop more modern laws that effectively govern e-bike management nationwide.
The VACC is calling for more precise definitions that align with the modern era of e-bikes.
“We call on all levels of government to be involved in this. The regulations are already there, so what we’re really asking for is for them to be enforced.”
Originally published as Alarming e-bike delivery rider behaviour revealed in new study
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