About e-bikes

Just to understand: We are not rejecting the e-bike concept across the board. For some people, this is a great mobility solution. And of course it's fun too. That's okay! However, we reject the huge amount of hazardous waste that this creates. This could not only be made much more environmentally friendly from a technical point of view, especially with the frame materials carbon and aluminum, which are classified as critical, as well as with the battery technology.

The industry is pushing the issue so hard that people who would actually ride a bike are now riding an e-bike. This has nothing to do with climate protection, but with systematic sales increases. The system is based on the pre-order system that has been in use for decades: At the end of the season, dealers order huge quantities of bikes for the next season. These are delivered over several delivery dates and must be paid for. Even a small retailer can very quickly reach six-figure inventories, while large retailers have millions at stake. These bills can only be paid if the bikes are sold as quickly as possible. Customers who used to have their old bike repaired are now told: throw it away, buy a modern e-bike. The trader must do this if he wants to survive. If he says A to the pre-order he has to say B in the sale. The guessing game in terms of models, colors, equipment variants, price ranges and frame sizes put additional pressure on retailers. A well-trained salesperson knows inventory levels and sees suitable prospects innocently asking for a repair.

After Eurobike 2023, to be as clear as possible, we removed aluminum frames (do not hold up, high CO2 footprint) and lithium-ion drives (critical origin of rare earths, no functioning recycling system) from the program. This is not meant to be radicalization with a religious character. We would like to see not only bicycles and e-bikes included in the solutions of the future, but all means of transport, including cars and airplanes. Why? Because different means of transport are required for every purpose and every route length. It's not realistic to travel to the US by bike or build a Eurobike by bike. ALL modes of transport must first be linked together in a sustainable manner and then cleverly. As such, we disagree with the industry's perennial mantra of transforming transportation by bicycle (which is now an e-bike). The traffic turnaround serves as a justification for taking inadequate measures behind the scenes in the production of the wheels that would reduce profits.

We continue to work on the topic of e-bikes and are looking for fully recyclable solutions. But we also see a future in the non-motorized bio-bike, especially the circular one from a smart factory.

P.S.: The illustration is only intended to show the current e-bike concept. There could also be an arbitrary brand name there. We also do not reject bikes from the brand shown, but only call on all industry participants to develop a solution.