No mention of electric motorbikes? Police say they have seized “illegal e-bikes” which can reach 72mph; Children tell parliament they want to cycle safely; finally a sprint stage at the Tour de France + more on the live blog
A choice of language
We’ve been fighting a never-ending battle over the language used by media and authorities alike over the use of the term e-bike, mainly when the word is misused to describe what is an illegally modified electric motorcycle. That’s admittedly a clunky term, but “illegal e-motorbike” is significantly shorter.
We even reported in the autumn on a small victory, when road.cc user Constantine managed to convince the BBC to correct their use of language on this issue…
But what are we to make of the term “illegal e-bike”? Because that’s what we’re faced with courtesy of Nottinghamshire Police, and also the BBC who wrote it up…
In their press release, Nottinghamshire Police do a reasonable job of making clear that the ‘e-bikes’ they have seized are “illegal”, including one that they found to reach speeds of 72mph. In contrast, legal e-bikes have a motor that tops out at 15.5mph. The BBC also make clear this caveat in their article, but irritatingly don’t describe the ‘e-bikes’ legality in their headline.
“E-bike capable of 72mph seized in crackdown” instead only furthers the idea that e-bikes are a menace and a danger to society, when in reality anything capable of breaking a motorway speed limit really ought to be called something else.
This is one of the dangers of using “illegal e-bikes” as a term, in that it opens the door to misunderstanding and stigmatisation of one of the key tools towards improving active travel and sustainable transport outcomes. It’s why ultimately, if an e-bike isn’t legal, it’s best not to call it an e-bike.
Unfortunately though, this is neither the police nor the BBC’s first rodeo, having made a Panorama documentary rife with such conflation…
How to photograph the Tour de France
Literally the most beautiful bike lane I've ever seen
Still, probably one to avoid in the wet with all those white lines. Vision, dreams and passion…
View this post on Instagram
Sweet dreams - Excellent content
As a team, Uno-X’s social media content is pretty unremarkable. Thankfully their riders more than pick up the slack, celebrating their teammate’s yellow jersey and emphatic lead…
View this post on Instagram
And of course, when Magnus Cort is on the team, you can gate crash the maillot jaune into your Rooms and Ratings series…
View this post on Instagram
Semi-relatedly, one of my favourite genre of photos is teammates celebrating one another’s victories at the podium…
“I thought this is going to be a long day”: Tadej Pogačar relaxed after losing Tour de France lead
Help us to bring you the best cycling content
If you’ve enjoyed this article, then please consider subscribing to road.cc from as little as £1.99. Our mission is to bring you all the news that’s relevant to you as a cyclist, independent reviews, impartial buying advice and more. Your subscription will help us to do more.
1 Comments
Read more...
Read more...
Read more...
Latest Comments
@mdavidford yes, of course the signals are advisory etc - but I think this tangent started in reference to the victim's reported comment "I was on a crossing. I thought it was safe, you just don't expect it".
I think anyone 'looking for a serious relationship' with Torstein Træen is going to be out of luck anyway - he looks pretty attached to that lion.
Just checked Continentals own data here: https://www.continental-tires.com/tire-knowledge/tire-rim-combinations-etrto-standards/#text-f52364d480) As expected, a 28mm tire only becomes 28.8mm wide on a 21mm rim.
You know the article has gone live when Surreyrider arrives to explain why it shouldn't be on road.cc.
"ETRTO requires that 28mm (stated) tyres should measure 28mm on a 19mm internal rim width, and 30mm (stated) tyres should measure 30mm on a 21mm internal rim width. If you take these requirements to real life, you will find that the casing width on a 28mm tyre can be close to, if not identical to, a 30mm tyre of the same make/model." This sounds like BS to me. The thickest part of the tyre is not at the bead, but more than halfway up the side of the tyre. Moving the bead 2 mm (or, 1 mm each side) should move the thickest part of the tyre less than 1 mm (0.5 mm each side). So a 30mm tyre would be at least 1mm wider before installation than a 28mm tire, probably more.
In any case, though, the signalling is entirely advisory for the pedestrians, and regardless of whether or not they have a green light there is a responsibility on other road users to take due care for their safety, just as there would be if they were crossing at any other part of the road where there was no crossing.
@ROOTminus1 The BBC video doesn't show the moment the pedestrians started crossing, but at the start of the video (below) it's on red when they are halfway across, and a car has just passed through. Not conclusive, but seems likely they crossed on red. Obviously doesn't absolve the scrote on the scoot, who absconded.
@HoarseMann RE: the pedestrian, a still image isn't conclusive in this circumstance as pedestrians don't get a yellow indication. It is perfectly reasonable that they began crossing on a green man, and the incident occurred in the period when a red light is displayed at all points, to ensure no road traffic begins moving and peds in motion can complete their transit, and new peds should not begin to cross. Similarly, the peds are equally plausible to have moved into the junction on a red, just as much as the convicted e-scooter rider. Though if both parties had equally disobeyed the signalling, the rider is still more at fault for being present on an illegal vehicle.
@quiff I did once have a conversation with an officer who had driven and parked on the footpath when the road was quite wide enough to park in without using the footpath. To say he couldn't have cared less would be an excellent example of the English understatement.
@eburtthebike I edited it, but it got posted twice. Please bring back editing.
1 thought on “No mention of electric motorbikes? Police say they have seized “illegal e-bikes” which can reach 72mph; Children tell parliament they want to cycle safely; finally a sprint stage at the Tour de France + more on the live blog”
I think anyone ‘looking for a serious relationship’ with Torstein Træen is going to be out of luck anyway – he looks pretty attached to that lion.