Like many things in life, the same concepts that apply to motorcycles apply to bicycles. Having enough power on tap to just get the hell out of the way of crazy people is always beneficial.
Regarding the inevitable whining that will ensue about “dangers to pedestrians,” which the article also briefly touches upon, if your vehicle can go the same speed as car traffic you should not be operating it on the sidewalk in the first place. You should be operating it on the street, just like a motorcycle. That eliminates the pedestrian angle, or at least reduces it to the same magnitude as existing vehicular traffic. Just to name one example out of many, nobody cries about me riding my FZ6R down the sidewalk because I don’t.
the same concepts that apply to motorcycles apply to bicycles
100%! My acoustic bike riding style changed for the better after training for and obtaining my motorcycle license, and that same training provides me better situational awareness on my ebike. Because at the end of the day, automobiles are basically always out to get two-wheelers. And defensive riding pays dividends by simply not having a crash. That’s an invaluable benefit, I would say.
Like many things in life, the same concepts that apply to motorcycles apply to bicycles. Having enough power on tap to just get the hell out of the way of crazy people is always beneficial.
Regarding the inevitable whining that will ensue about “dangers to pedestrians,” which the article also briefly touches upon, if your vehicle can go the same speed as car traffic you should not be operating it on the sidewalk in the first place. You should be operating it on the street, just like a motorcycle. That eliminates the pedestrian angle, or at least reduces it to the same magnitude as existing vehicular traffic. Just to name one example out of many, nobody cries about me riding my FZ6R down the sidewalk because I don’t.
The issue is, we shouldn’t be making bikes more like cars. The safety issue is cars not the speed of bicycles.
This is the same logic that has lead to huge SUVs in the US - by not addressing the root cause you just cause everyone to escalate.
100%! My acoustic bike riding style changed for the better after training for and obtaining my motorcycle license, and that same training provides me better situational awareness on my ebike. Because at the end of the day, automobiles are basically always out to get two-wheelers. And defensive riding pays dividends by simply not having a crash. That’s an invaluable benefit, I would say.