David Van Seters Talks Electric Bikes
David Van Seters is a local sustainability expert and visionary. As the founder of SPUD organic food delivery service and President of Sustainability Ventures, the environment is more than just an interest for David, it’s a passion and a way of life. When we went out in search of information about electric bikes, we knew David would have a great deal to say on the matter:
I have owned an electric bike for over a year and, at the risk of sounding melodramatic, it has literally changed my life.
It has caused me to dramatically reduce my car use (thereby reducing my car-related expenses and my carbon footprint), increase my physical exercise (as I own a pedal-assist bike) and arrive at my destination often as fast or faster than by car or bus, but without feeling sweaty and in need of a shower.
In addition, I get a great deal of pleasure whizzing along bike paths and neighbourhood streets that I would never travel through by car or bus.
Better still, because electric bikes actually save people money, use existing road and/or bike path infrastructure, can be recharged from a regular wall plug, and require no special license or insurance, their adoption also improves our economic situation.
At a broader level, my experience convinces me that electric bikes have the potential to reduce car use (and related congestion and greenhouse gas emissions) enormously. This appears to be happening already in Europe and Asia where sales of electric bikes are exploding.
For some reason, electric bikes have not yet taken off in North America and I have decided to do what I can to change that.
I researched over 50 electric bikes before buying from a local company called Elite Electric Bikes and after a year of use, I still think it is one of the best purchases I have ever made. While it is possible to buy cheaper electric bikes, I strongly recommend against it because in my opinion, they are far less powerful, their battery charge will not last nearly as long, and their lesser quality components will lead to excessive repairs.
If you are interested in learning more about the electric bicycles, take a test ride and see for yourself how much fun they are to ride!
I believe that if we can get people using electric bikes as their primary means of commuting to work, it will have a profound effect in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and traffic congestion.