Zoomi Life

Here come the electric bicycles! Amidst financial uncertainty and a deepening recession, one U.S. market is doing surprisingly well - electric bicycles. Recent reports indicate that the number of e-bikes sold in the U.S. is set to grow to over 170,000 units this year as big retailers get in on the electric bicycle game.

Earlier this year, Wal-Mart began selling electric bicycles from Currie Technologies, makers of the eZip and iZip line of electric bicycles and one of the U.S. largest e-bike sellers. The number of retail locations from which the Currie e-bikes are being sold is set to expand from 145 to over 450 Wal-Mart stores this year. That’s a lot of exposure for electric bicycles, and while we’re none-too-happy about seeing a mega-retailer like Wal-Mart enter the e-bike fray, it should provide a whole lot of visibility for these innovative, useful transportation devices.

By next spring, Wal-Mart plans to sell the e-Bikes in more than 850 stores, says Larry Pizzi, president of Currie, based in Chatsworth, Calif. Toys ‘R’ Us plans to expand its distribution of the e-bikes tenfold, to 550 stores. “This has been the most rapid growth year in the company’s 10-year history,” Pizzi says. “We have seen dramatically increased interest of the consumer thanks to financial motivations and environmental concerns.”

Bruno Maier, executive vice-president for marketing at Cannondale Bicycle, the maker of Schwinn-brand bikes, expects his company’s US e-bike sales to jump fivefold between August 2007, when Cannondale introduced its first electric bike, and next year. To meet anticipated demand, the manufacturer plans to double its investment in e-bikes in 2009 and to establish a separate product group focused on the motorized models.

Will electric bicycles become widely accepted in the U.S., or fizzle out as a short-term fad? Only time will tell, and a lot of it depends on gas prices. Eric Sundin, president of Electric Bikes Northwest & California, one of the largest distributors of high-end electric bikes like Giant, stated: “If gas prices come down, people will be come less interested. Bicycle purchases are largely correlated to the disposable income.” If gas prices rise again this year, we might just see an explosion of e-bikes on the road. But if not, e-bikes might go the way of the Dodo.

Source: Bike-EU