Bike-loving Dutch grapple with illegal electric 'fatbike' craze gripping the Netherlands
Bike-loving Dutch grapple with illegal electric 'fatbike' craze gripping the Netherlands
Some 17,500 fatbikes imported from China have been held by Dutch authorities over concerns about speed manipulation and safety risks.
Some 17,500 fatbikes imported from China have been held by Dutch authorities over concerns about speed manipulation and safety risks.
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But the fatbike fad — they are especially popular among teenagers — has triggered a myriad of complaints and prompted a call for new legislation aimed at restricting their use.
Apart from the humming noise made by the large tyres on the road, authorities are also concerned at the ease in bypassing software that restricts their speed to the legal limit.
I'm sure the same people complaining about fat bike tire noise have never once complained about the much louder sound of car and truck tires.
Wait, hang the fuck on...
the ease in bypassing software that restricts their speed to the legal limit.
As opposed to the insurmountable difficulty of pressing the car's accelerator pedal a bit harder?
It's an issue when these vehicle sharing the same bike lane with mostly slow moving bike. They've already done with fighting car so I don't think it's fair to just bring car into the mix. These thing is already a moped if it can exceed road bike speed with ease.
Yeah the Netherlands has basically a dedicated bicycle infrastructure meant for pedal cycles. There is a whole bunch of context for this story that is easy to miss if you don’t live there.
It’s not about cars vs e-bikes - it’s about not being allowed to bring an ultra powered bike that’s unsafe for other riders. It’s more akin to how your car has to follow regulations to be allowed on the road.
That shit about noise is just old people being old people. It’s the potential safety issues that got these bikes held up in customs.
Yeah, we're talking about Netherlands here, the cycling haven of Earth, if they think these super pedelec is an issue on bike lane you better take note of it if you want a safe cycling city. These thing have the max speed of 30 to 40mph(48/64kmph) after unlocked and it would get really ugly if it hit someone, as people there tend to not wear helmet when riding bicycle because it's unnecessary and super safe to do so.
If you ever had a car/moped/motorcycle that zoom by you in 50kmph while riding on the road you know how scarry that is.
I'll be candid, I was expecting faster. 30mph is pretty regularly doable on a road bike (obviously not a fatbike, but just talking sharing a lane here), not sustained unless you're riding in the TDF, but as a sprint? Yeah, definitely doable.
Just to be clear I'm not saying it wouldn't be a problem at 30-40mph for these fatbikes, because you're talking about anyone being able to do those speeds, fully sustained for long periods, just that I was expecting even higher from the way it was being described.
At the same time I want one to try out...
30mph is i think the low end one, some can go 40mph and higher. Check out this youtube channel, he reviewed some high speed one.
I do wanna try one out too, but i wouldn't buy one, it make more sense to get a moped. Because it's basically moped disguised as a pedelec. Kinda defeating the purpose of a bicycle if you ask me.
I can see where there could be use... I live in the kind of area where the only path available at certain points is major roads, where going 30mph in a car would be so slow its dangerous.
Being able to hit a higher speed like 50 for a short period, then get off and go back to biking.... That I could see as an appropriate use.
Personally I like the idea of electric, I have a crappy knee so if it hurts randomly (which happens), I basically turn around use one leg to actually pedal. As a result, I'm not doing the rides I used to do, from a 100 mile weekend bit of fun down to around a 10 mile super quick bit of fun. Electric would make me feel comfortable going for longer. Of course, I'm not looking to go 60mph on a bicycle anyway.
the cars don't use the bike lane.
It's the Netherlands, the cars aren't automatic.
Fuck off mate. We have seperate lanes for bikes and cars. We've been hating on vehicles going too fast on the bike lane since their existance. Scooters, e-bikes and anything else that's a danger to other cyclists.
Both of you need to chill the fuck out: You can disagree and argue without the personal attacks.
Both of you get a temporary ban. In the future when you are here you need to win your arguments without attacking the person.
Firstly check your attitude, dick.
Secondly I'm a cyclist. I was only pointing out the absurdity of complaining about road noise from a bike that is at most 50dB when road noise from cars hovers in the 90dB range yet no one ever complains about car noise.
Thirdly, not every city has separated bike and car lanes. I personally have no issue with fast moving bikes in the same lane as me because I'm not a coward like you seem to be. I also know how to handle my bike properly and keep my head on a swivel which helps me avoid accidents.
Both of you need to chill the fuck out: You can disagree and argue without the personal attacks.
Both of you get a temporary ban. In the future when you are here you need to win your arguments without attacking the person.
Firstly, check your attitude, dick. Secondly, I'm a cyclist.
It's not about you mate. Or your pathetic bravado. "Oh look at me, I don't mind people making the bike lane less safe because I'm so brave! Road safety? That's for whimps!"
As if teenagers aren't at risk here, or anyone else who travels by bike.
And where comes the idea from that people don't complain about loud trucks/cars? That's some made up bs. Nor does it at all solve anything about the boosted issues of fatbikes/scooters. Which is more traffic accidents!
It's the Netherlands, if you're a self-described cyclist, they like bikes more than you do. Your assertion is a bad one.
could it be possible that these bikes can go faster, and thus are louder, than the cars and trucks can go within city streets in the Netherlands?
Is it so hard for Americans to imagine that there could be places that are not directly next to a road? lol