As we all know, there has been a huge uptake in e-bike usage in the last few years. In fact from 2020 to 2021 E-Bike sales nearly doubled, and the same level of increase is expected to show in the numbers for 2022 (U.S. E-bike Sales Outpaced Electric Cars in 2021 – Bloomberg). This is creating a revolution in the way people get around in our County. E-bikes provide alternative transportation to cars that expand mobility of riders, emit no greenhouse gasses, and make riding the ubiquitous hills of Marin accessible to a much wider range of people.
However, new vehicles on our roads and paths create new challenges. We have heard concerns from riders on multi-use paths that some e-bike users are riding at unsafe speeds or not being respectful of others in the shared space. We think we can reap the many benefits of e-bikes while mitigating some of the growing pains with our new program E-Bike Smart Marin.
What we have planned
We recently received a generous grant from the Marin County Non-Profit Community Partners Program to fund this exciting new program which will implement and coordinate a teen e-bike rider safety program, host e-bike test rides for electeds and agency staff, conduct outreach to under-resourced communities about planned e-bike rebates, and help older adults safely enjoy the benefits of e-bikes in order to make this green means of transportation more accessible for all.
We truly believe that instructing Marin’s students in proper and safe e-bike usage through our curriculum will make for safer and better riding for all in Marin.
Moreover, we feel that e-bikes should be readily accessible to commuters of all incomes due to their low environmental impact and ability to expand travel distances. With the outreach that E-Bike Smart Marin will carry out, we will inform our communities about the number of e-bike rebates in order to achieve this goal.
Check out ABC7’s coverage of E-bike Safety here.
Interested in learning more or signing up for a class? Click here to sign up for E-bike Smart Marin updates.
sign-up for advocacy alerts
We will need your help ensuring these bills get passed! Please sign-up for advocacy alerts using the form below and we’ll tell you when/how to support our efforts.
members make it happen
We’re working to make Marin more bike-friendly for people of all ages and abilities. Are you with us?