Cost/benefit analysis of ebiking versus driving a car

[DDBB]

I prefer to not do the math but I can see why others do. Unfortunately we live in an area where it would be VERY dangerous to ride the ebikes to the grocery store, bank or other services. It's sad because those locations are only about 4 mi. away. The state road that we have to drive to get there is quite busy with a 55mph speed limit. There is a shoulder but it's just flat out frightening to ride it. I've tried and won't do it again so for us, the ebikes are just for recreation. Since they are only for recreation, I see no benefit of figuring out cost per mile and obviously we aren't saving anything by not using the cars. Actually we are using the car MORE to transport the ebikes to good bike paths. Hopefully these ebikes really catch on and we get more and more bike paths in our area but I'm not holding my breath for a bike lane alongside M-32

 

[ilanarama]

DDBB gives a perfect example of why this is a very individual calculation. Your personal habits and usage, your environment (I expect the risk of injury/death when biking is much higher in e.g. Miami, FL than it is here in Durango, CO), your local gas/electric costs, whether you have installed renewables, and so on are critical factors. In the US, outside cities, most people own cars already and the marginal cost for any individual trip is (usually) relatively small.

For my own case, the cost-benefit analysis is a simple equation. If I drive, I hate the universe and everything in it, and if I ride my bike, I don't. Therefore, riding my bike is roughly one gazillion times better than driving my car. There, I have proved it by SCIENCE.

 

[steve mercier]

BC offering $850 rebate to scrap your old car and buy an e-bike!

 

[steve mercier]

About a mohth ago I emailed the Premier of BC with a request that the Government offer a scrap-it rebate towards Ebikes like the ones they have for Ecars. Now I am not claiming that I am responsible for this, but I am very happy to see it come to life. Kudos to John Horgan and crew!

 

[sl_duck]

The $850 incentive has been in place for more than a year already. It just seems to be getting promoted now as part of their newly released strategy.
Certainly worth it if you have a beater that suddenly blows up the engine.

 

[steve mercier]

The $850 incentive has been in place for more than a year already. It just seems to be getting promoted now as part of their newly released strategy.
Certainly worth it if you have a beater that suddenly blows up the engine.

So they just re-announced it? Then I only get credit for being a day late and a dollar short since that means when I emailed him it was already in place. Duhhhh........