A push to cycling—exploring the e-bike's role in overcoming barriers to bicycle use with a survey and an intervention study

Abstract

In Norway, as in many countries, there is a political goal to increase bicycle use. The electric bicycle (e-bike) is a promising tool for achieving this goal, given the hilliness of the country. However, little is yet known about the deterrents of cycling in Norway in general, and in particular how the purchase of an e-bike could be stimulated. In the current study, 5500 respondents from a convenience sample among car owners were asked about their perceptions of bicycling in general, and of e-bikes in particular as well as their willingness to pay (WTP) for an e-bike. Randomly selected participants (N D 66) were given access to an e-bike for a limited time (2 or 4 weeks). A second questionnaire captured the same perceptions and WTP postintervention. The results were compared with a control group (N D 214). The results showed that those who cycle the least were most interested in buying an e-bike and that prior knowledge of the e-bike corresponded with a higher desire to buy one. Pro-environmental values did not predict interest in e-bikes, neither did norms and attitudes toward cycling. The WTP for an e-bike increased after having experienced the benefits for those who used an e-bike compared to those who did not. Price reduction of the e-bike (e.g. VAT exemption), spread of knowledge among the wider population, and actions to offer an e-bike experience may therefore be effective strategies for further expansion of the e-bike in the transport system and thereby to increase bicycle use in Norway.

E-bike trials’ potential to promote sustained changes in car owners mobility habits

“…In line with previous research [11,15,16,21,24,[26][27], our study findings indicate that disruptions of individuals' mobility context may trigger changes in habitual travel choices. Bearing in mind that our study did not measure actual habits but rather habitual associations it provides strong evidence that exchanging one's car keys for an e-bike for just a few weeks influences long-term habitual associations with car usage, and that this change persists even a year after the end of the intervention.…”

“…In contrast, since it is still a niche mode of transportation, most participants may not have any previous experience with riding an e-bike. Hence, during the two-week trial, participants may have had novel, first-hand experiences of the benefits of e-bikes, including health benefits, time savings or the realisation that steep slopes-a key barrier to conventional cycling [2,3,11,32]-are much less of a challenge than they may have expected.…”

“…While e-bikes may also replace walking or conventional biking, the evidence from the available field studies suggests that purchasing an e-bike results in considerable substitution of car usage [2,[4][5][6][7][8][9][10]. However, while e-bike sales have shown rapid growth rates, e-bikes still represent a niche product that appeals mostly to the 'dark green' or 'early adopter' segments [2,3,6,[11][12][13][14].…”

“…While most of the available interventions focus on the switch from cars to public transportation, there have also been three studies on e-bikes [10,11,32]. These studies showed that trying out an e-bike for two to four weeks is a promising approach to breaking participants' mobility habits, resulting, inter alia, in a higher willingness to purchase an e-bike [11], lower habitual association with car use directly after the trial [32] and interest in using e-bikes more often in the future [10]. However, none of the previous studies provided a longitudinal assessment of whether the context disruption caused by an e-bike trial is strong enough to induce long-term shifts in participants' mobilityrelated habits.…”

Differences of Cycling Experiences and Perceptions between E-Bike and Bicycle Users in the United States

“…With power assistance, many barriers to cycling are reduced or overcome, including increasing age, physical limitations, hilly terrain, a lack of time, and a lack of fitness or the perception of fitness that is needed to cycle [1,13,14,[19][20][21][22]. While power assistance makes riding easier, riders still gain some physical activity benefits by pedaling.…”