MENACE ON OUR STREETS

A big e-bike with an illegal throttle can be deadly – Adrian Chiles on the dark side of the city runabout

Incredibly, the Government will potentially help you buy an illegal e-bike via a cycle to work scheme

THERE can’t be many of us who haven’t had a close shave with an e-bike, be it on a road, pavement or footpath.

They’re big, they’re heavy and they come at you silently, often at alarming speed.

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Adrian Chiles spent the day on an ebike for PanoramaCredit: Supplied
Ian Hislop was left with head injuries after being struck by an electric bike while crossing the roadCredit: No Credit
He was seen with a bandage on his head following the accidentCredit: No Credit

Invariably, it’ll be a food courier bearing special cargo — someone’s dinner — in a big box on the back.

You look at these machines and think, ‘These things can’t be legal, can they?’.”

Well, it turns out that some are legal, many aren’t, and plenty of people don’t know which is which.

Those who do know the rules often ignore them because no one seems to have much of a clue as to how to go about enforcing those rules anyway.

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They’re not all bad.

I’d never ridden one before I made a film about them for the BBC’s Panorama programme.

Now I’ve done so, I can absolutely see why people like them.

In London, you can simply rent yourself an e-bike — like a Lime bike, for example — and hit the road.

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It’s like cycling, but easier.

Start pedalling and the motor joins in to help you along.

Mum, 25, killed after being rammed off e-bike in hit-and-run murder

What’s not to like?

These kind of e-bikes are perfectly legal and, for many people, have improved city living no end.

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Yes, ridden irresponsibly they can be dangerous — ask Ian Hislop, who had a scrape with an e-bike before Christmas — but we have to believe the pros outweigh the cons.

And anyway, they’re here to stay.

The real problems come with some of the bigger e-bikes, widely available online and in shops.

On a legal e-bike, to get the motor working you need to be pedalling.

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There is no separate throttle or switch to get you to full speed.

So if you stop pedalling, the bike slows down.

But the bigger bikes invariably come with throttles, which is illegal.

The retailers often claim they’re in the clear if the throttle is deactivated when you buy it.

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However, if it’s a simple matter to get the throttle working once you’ve made the purchase — as it usually is — that, too, is illegal.

Whatever.

Who’s checking anyway?

So off you go.

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‘They can catch fire’

No need to do much pedalling, your throttle will get the motor doing more of the work.

Effectively, you’ve got yourself a moped.

Except, if you do ride a moped, it needs a registration plate.

And you need to be insured.

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With an e-bike, you need nothing of the sort.

It gets worse.

On a legal e-bike, the motor has to cut out when you reach 15.5mph.

And the motor itself must have a maximum output of 250 watts.

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Trust me, if you want to buy an e-bike which has a motor much more powerful than that, and certainly doesn’t cut out at 15.5mph, then it’ll take you five minutes max to find one online.

And, incredibly, the Government will potentially help you buy one of these illegal e-bikes via a cycle to work scheme.

This is where you can have the price of a bike deducted from your payslip before you’ve been taxed on that income.

It’s been running for more than 20 years.

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The Government insists illegal bikes aren’t eligible for the schemes, but many of the retailers we looked at don’t seem to have got the message.

E-bikes are now a common sight on our roadsCredit: Getty
Machines strewn across the pavement in London’s PiccadillyCredit: Alamy

For the police, e-bikes have become a real challenge.

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