The Environmental Benefits of E-Bikes
Electric bicycles, or e-bikes, have been around for longer than you might think, but it’s only in the last decade that they’ve spread like wildfire. And it’s not just one generation riding them; teenagers, parents, commuters, and older individuals are all amongst those taking advantage of the boost offered by the bike’s electric motor.
Additionally, e-bikes have been a symbol of environmentally friendly transportation, as illustrated by the growing number of states offering rebate programs. But that begs the question: how environmentally friendly are e-bikes?
As with electric vehicles, there are concerns over the environmental impact of mining for metals such as lithium, nickel, and aluminum, which are necessary for the production of e-bikes. While these concerns are extremely valid, there are many environmental benefits of e-bikes. As we explore in this article, these benefits ultimately make e-bikes an environmentally-sound mode of transportation.
Photo by Gotrax
A brief history of e-bikes
People have been riding bicycles of one form or another for over two centuries. Not only are they efficient, but they also present the rider with a level of independence that used to be quite rare. In the mid-1900’s, bicycles became even more efficient when inventors started adding motors to them.
The first motorized bicycle was essentially a moped – or, better said: the first motorcycle was essentially a bicycle with a motor, with propulsion that was independent of pedaling. After that, mopeds evolved to do away with pedals, becoming less and less like bicycles and more and more like motorcycles.
It wasn’t until the 1990’s that a version of the modern e-bike – a pedal-assist pedelec – came on the scene. These early electric motors were powered by lead-acid batteries that were heavy, not very powerful, and expensive. However, Sony’s commercialization of the lithium-ion cell not only proved instrumental for the home electronics boom, but it also ended up revolutionizing the e-bike.
Today, e-bikes are lighter, more powerful, and more affordable than they were 30, 20, even 10 years ago. But as with solar technology, advancements are still ongoing!
Interested in learning more about the history of e-bikes? Here’s a good resource.
The true environmental impact of e-bikes
Biking has long been touted as an environmentally-friendly form of transportation. Besides during manufacturing, bicycles require no fossil fuels, emit no greenhouse gasses, and cause little to no wear on the road. Biking is also considered more practical than walking, except for very short distances, due to it being faster and more efficient.
But what if it could be even faster and efficient? This is where e-bikes come in. However, unlike their non-electric counterparts, e-bikes require more resources to build and maintain, resulting in a larger, more impactful environmental footprint.
E-bikes are imperfect
Everything has an environmental impact, or footprint, associated with it. For example, when companies and communities set a “climate pledge” or a goal to become net zero, it doesn’t mean that they’ll have no impact at all; rather, the goal is to balance the bad (e.g., GHG emissions) with the good (e.g., carbon offsetting).
Now, we can’t have an honest conversation about the environmental impact of e-bikes without briefly discussing the negatives. For one, the standard e-bike battery is a lithium-ion battery, made with minerals such as lithium and nickel. Not only are these minerals a limited resource, but the process of mining them is environmentally-fraught, resulting in water pollution and land degradation.
Additionally, even though the metals and minerals used in the production of e-bikes are technically recyclable, it’s not currently an economically- or socially-viable solution. This indirectly leads to the extraction of more “virgin” materials and increases the amount of potentially toxic materials in the landfill.
Finally, a valid concern with e-bikes is that they’re still deeply reliant on fossil fuels, which account for roughly 60% of the US’ energy supply. Unless an e-bike’s battery is charged with “clean” energy, it’s not technically emissions-free.
The environmental benefits of e-bikes
While e-bikes are not entirely net-zero, they nevertheless present many environmental advantages that ultimately tip the scales in their favor. This becomes especially clear when e-bikes are compared to other forms of transportation, as illustrated by the hierarchy of sustainable transportation.
Little air pollution
One of the biggest advantages of e-bikes is that they result in very little air pollution.
True, e-bikes are not entirely emissions-free. One must account for the GHG emissions tied to production, from mining all the way to assembly. Plus, regularly charging the battery requires electricity. Unless the electricity comes from “clean” energy sources such as solar or wind, that means additional emissions throughout the e-bike’s lifetime.
That said, these emissions are ultimately minimal when compared to other forms of transportation, especially gasoline-powered cars, but even electric vehicles. To put things into perspective, let’s look at the average GHG emissions of each type of vehicle on a per mile basis:
E-bike: 24 grams of CO2 per mile (this calculation takes into account not only the electricity needed to power the battery, but also the emissions tied to food consumption).
Electric vehicle (EV): 200 grams of CO2 per mile (calculated by researchers from MIT).
Gasoline car: over 350 grams of CO2 per mile (same study as above).
So as you can see, more electric bikes (instead of vehicles, electric or not) results in a fraction of GHG emissions. Less emissions means less air pollution, resulting in cleaner cities and healthier individuals.
No noise pollution
An often-overlooked benefit of e-bikes (and even EVs, for that matter) is that they result in zero noise pollution (or very little, in the case of EVs). While some would argue that quietness can be dangerous, the same can be said of noise.
In fact, a review of noise pollution and its effects on human health had some very disturbing findings:
Noise can lead to hearing loss, sleep disruption, cardiovascular disease, absenteeism, and accidents.
Noise can impair one’s well-being and happiness.
Noise has the same adverse effects as chronic stress.
Not only is noise unpleasant, but as researchers found, it results in tangible economic losses, too. Swapping out loud, noise-polluting cars for bikes would not only make roads more pleasant, it would also result in healthier environments.
Fewer cars on the road
In the United States alone, there are more than 282 million cars driving around on nearly 4 million miles of roadway. If the emissions associated with each vehicle weren’t enough, all of those roads require immense amounts of materials and energy to be built and maintained.
It turns out that over half of all trips taken by cars are less than 3 miles, a distance that can easily be covered by an e-bike. Swapping a car for e-bike for even just a small number of trips would vastly reduce the wear on roads, allowing them to last longer before needing costly and materials-heavy repairs.
In addition to saving taxpayers money, having fewer cars on the road means less traffic, making roads safer and more pleasant to drive on. Speaking of safety, as more people ride bikes, the focus shifts towards building more bike infrastructure, such as protected bike paths.
Bonus: e-bikes are great for your physical and mental well-being!
Riding an e-bike, while not as strenuous as riding a conventional bicycle, is an active form of transportation that provides numerous benefits to one’s physical and mental well-being. Even a light amount of physical exercise has been shown to reduce stress levels, boost immunity, support a healthy circadian rhythm, and increase levels of dopamine.
Plus, starting the day off with movement is a great way to feel energized and be more creative and productive throughout the day.
What do you think about the growing use of e-bikes? Share your concerns or success stories in the comments below!
