The electric bicycle is positioned as an important alternative in terms of urban mobility globally, being a market with high growth rates in recent years. Countries such as China, the Netherlands, Germany, the United States, and Mexico, to name a few, are betting on this means of transportation that is gaining more and more popularity every day.
But where does the rise of this type of transportation come from? Fashion, simply a different way of getting around? "The benefits of an electric bicycle such as easy mobility, zero emissions of polluting gases, and affordable costs, place this method of transportation as one at the forefront when proposing alternative means of travel that alleviate traffic congestion, speed up citizens' commuting times, and reduce environmental pollution," commented Eduardo Torres, Manager of ElectroBike, a franchise of electric bicycles with a presence in Panama.
The Electric Mobility report, Opportunities for Latin America prepared by the United Nations Environment Programme (UN Environment) and the European Union's Euroclima Programme, published in 2016, cites the best practices in urban mobility and environmental care from the most developed countries in terms of electric transportation as an example; it estimates that the deployment of electric mobility in Latin America would represent an approximate decrease of 1.4 Giga tons of CO2 and a fuel savings of around 85 billion dollars for the period 2016-2050.
The aforementioned report recommends the use of various electric vehicle options including 2 and 3-wheelers such as the electric bicycle, with a higher growth projection for this segment in Latin America, given the lower costs per vehicle and the advantages they represent in urban travel.
The report adds that during the United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP21 in Paris), a target was set to reach 400 million units of electric 2 and 3-wheeled vehicles globally (IEA 2016); anticipating that a large part of this stock would be absorbed by the Chinese market, expecting that a growing portion of these vehicles will end up in the Latin American region, as has indeed happened in the isthmus.
In Panama, the electric bicycle market has great potential for development, the country is experiencing an interesting transformation of its road infrastructure, integrating bike lanes in various areas of the Capital City, increasing spaces for pedestrians, among other measures. The use of electric bicycles is a global trend that has shown great advantages in terms of urban mobility and quality of life for its users,” concluded Eduardo Torres from ElectroBikes.
