Any folks here from the Ottawa/Gatineau area in Canada?

[Wolf krannich]

Hello Folks..

I live in the Ottawa /Gatineau region in Canada.

I am curious if there are any other folks from this area in this forum?

What interests me are any experiences with local law enforcement regarding your ebikes in this region?

I have been told by a fellow I met that he has been stopped many times on his Schwinn electric bike (Canadian Tire 'very basic' old ebike) and that the police gave him a really hard time until he convinced them that the labels on the frame were the 'real thing' and that this was a legit ebike..

I have now outfitted my ebike (which happens to be a Schwinn ebike frame) with a Golden Motor kit, which has to be throttled down to the legal 32kmh via a USB / PC setup..

So I am curious what my 'real' legal position on the street is - as long as I basically drive respectfully and within the 32kmh limits.

I already received some attitude from a bicycle person pointing out to me that the speed limit was 30 kmh on the shared roadside bike path (I was going 34 kmh) as she flew past me going about 40 kmh or more via muscle power.. so I know, also from reading the newsgroup, that ebikes are not a favorite bunch on the local bike paths..

Any feedback is appreciated.

Thank you

Wolfgang

 

[KenM.]

Man! That sounds like a very unfriendly place you live in up there.
Got to move to Fla. They do not even know the deference between an ebike and a regular bike.
Do not worry , the winters will not be to much of a shock to you! Keep looking up ! Ken.

 

[Wolf krannich]

Man! That sounds like a very unfriendly place you live in up there.
Got to move to Fla. They do not even know the deference between an ebike and a regular bike.
Do not worry , the winters will not be to much of a shock to you! Keep looking up ! Ken.

Hah! Sounds good to me - no biking here for me after September/October...

 

[Wolf krannich]

Thank you for this.. I am just paranoid after the info that fellow gave me. So I am being careful.
And I fully agree that the 32 kmh limit is kind of silly. Not on a crowded bikepath, there it has it's place for sure (except that it does not seem to apply to the adrenaline pumped 'pro' bikers )
When I am on a road all by myself, no traffic, I'd like to be able to move as fast as safely possible..
Anyhow, we'll see how it goes - so far I am very happy with my decision not to buy a second 'junk' car and at least for the snow free months to use my ebike as a second commuter vehicle..
And the scenery along the Ottawa River and in the Gatineau Park is extremely nice.
With my bum knee I would not be seeing this without the ebike.

Cheers
Wolf

 

[gtawest]

I'm in Toronto and never had any issues, although I always slow down on crowded bike paths and when approaching police. Ottawa laws seem pretty standard as long as you don't have a scooter type:

http://ottawa.ca

 

[Wolf krannich]

Thank you for the reply. I appreciate the input..

So far this has been a good experience.
All inspired by the idea not to have two cars and to get some more fresh air.

It's working so far. The jury is still out on how this will work from November to April.

Ride safely.

Wolfgang