November 9, 2021 - Currently e-bikes — not cars — appear to be the world’s best-selling electric vehicle. The pandemic bike boom boosted e-bike sales 145 percent from 2019 to 2020, more than double the rate of classic bikes, according to the market research firm NPD Group reports the New York Times.
E-bikes are everywhere. While estimates vary, Americans purchased around half a million e-bikes in 2020 vs 231,000 electric cars according to the Pew Research Center – two to one with no signs of slowing down.
Deloitte projected that 130 million e-bikes would be sold worldwide between 2020 and 2023, a trend that has the potential to transform urban transit according to David Zipper, a visiting fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and a specialist in new forms of mobility technology.
According to Zipper the rapid development of lithium-ion batteries coupled with the worldwide resurgence of interest in urban cycling, along with bike-sharing programs are fueling the transition.
Read the full report here.