E-bike attract new riders

Up until April 2021, PST was charged on e-bikes but not on regular bicycles.

There was a push from cycling advocacy groups to get that updated and it finally was. Before 2021, you could say buyers of regular bicycles got a rebate while e-bikes cost more.

One of the things we've seen is e-bikes aren't the natural progression of cyclists who are riding already, in order to to allow them to ride further and faster. E-bikes encourage those who aren't riding yet to start riding a bike.

So this rebate for e-bikes is the carrot to speed up the process of getting people to switch from using their (vehicles) all the time to using a more efficient form of transportation, trying to level out the purchase of a bike for that extra functionality that will get people switching modes is a good thing.

Being in my 50s, I still ride without pedal-assist, and I will continue to do that as long as I can. When I need an e-bike I'll get one. Unfortunately, it will probably have lower components so I can fit it into the same budget niche that my current bikes fit into. That being said, maybe with this rebate I'll be able to afford the same quality of components by using the rebate if it still exists by then.

While nothing in this world is produced without a carbon footprint, e-bikes, kilometre for kilometre, are much better than a car, internal combustion engine or electric vehicle. It is discussed here: https://www.ebike24.com/blog/co2-ebikes-vs-cars

Landon Bradshaw, Kelowna