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--kinds dead around here. I guess everyone is virtue-signaled out about using paper straws while eating plastic meat brought home in their re-usable shopping bags.
One of my favorite sites is "Low Tech Magazine." They just put out this piece-- some amazing numbers.
They point out the trend in manufacturing bikes in regards location (we're paying China to do our polluting for us), materials and styles (don't electric bikes kinda defeat the purpose?) are making bikes a little less enviro-friendly than they used to be https://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2023...ble-again.html
Quick summary-- manufacturing has shifted to China- now producing 75% of all bikes....Marerials have shifted away from steel to aluminum and now even carbon fiber-- each way more energy intensive to produce than steel, and don't last nearly as long, so more need to be produced as replacements each year.
Surprisingly, the bike lending programs are not nearly as efficent in terms of carbon footprint than private ownership....An Al bike in one of these programs is not even half as efficient as a car in terms of carbon footprint (!!)...
..of course, a simple steel bike is 70x more effcient in that regard.
I'm curious about the plastic meat comment. Microplastic waste is everywhere, it'd not be surprising if we're somehow eating it too.
There are a few US manufactured bikes still available, but none of them are the big name brands.
Electric bikes "defeat the purpose"? Not for everyone, since some people simply wouldn't choose and/or be capable of riding their select route (s) if it weren't for some pedal assist. Getting more people out of a car and on a bike serves a purpose, does it not?
We had our first E-bike experience this fall at Zion NP. I was really impressed by their range and power. We had 4 hours to traverse the 20 miles round trip, stopping to take in some sites and also do one of the shorter hikes. Piece of cake with the bikes. One can select as much or little assist as desired. With total assist it's almost like riding a scooter. With no assist it's just pedaling a heavy bike.
If you wanted to criticize me, you should have pointed out how clumsily I stated the efficiency of the e-bike vs a car-- I should have said that particular e-bike is not quite twice as efficient...
If you took your 20 mile excursion with a compainion, each on an Al, bike borrowing program type e-bike, your carbon footprint would have been more than if you'd both ridden in one car (216g C /km vs 200 gC/km)...and that doesn't count the carbon footprint of the food you'd eaten to add power to the bikes.
As an aside to this conversation, by plasitc meat, I was referring to the new brain child of elite-- artifical, test tube meat. Why is chemicals in our food not good, but chemical food is good?...But I keep forgetting. Some people have no sense of humor. Excuse me.
There's no comparison between a steel pedal bike and an ebike, from a guy who had both for commuting. The debate isn't whether the ebike or bike is more efficient, it's whether you were in the car or on the bike. You can double your speed on an ebike vs regular and you don't show up to the office sweaty. If it takes me 35 minutes, I'll drive on the April morning, if it's 20 minutes, I'll ebike.
There's no way driving can be anywhere near the efficiency of an ebike. 50 pounds vs a couple tons means everything is magnitudes more resource intensive on a vehicle. I read somewhere that it costs like $.48 to charge a 30-40 mile ebike battery.
As long as people are using them for more than a couple recreation trips a year, ebikes are the most efficient transport mechanism.
This seems more like a commentary on the current state of manufacturing. Today most manufactured goods are not designed with longevity or repairability in mind. Bicycles are just one example. And yes, carbon fiber is certainly overkill for a commuter bike, especially an e-bike.
One can save a lot of money (as compared to car commuting) by using a steel-frame or aluminum-frame e-bike. I've never known anyone who uses a rented bicycle for commuting. I was a seasonal bicycle commuter for a number of years. The main issue, at least in the U.S., is that the number of bicycle commuters is insignificant, and it's hard to imagine any incentive that would encourage a significant number of commuters to switch to an e-bike.
My current commute does not offer a safe route for biking. Much of the trip would be riding just a few feet away from vehicles traveling 45-60 mph. My wife would insist on a doubling of my life insurance policy, haha.
On the subject of bikes, a relative manufactures bamboo bicycles. Sustainable and very light weight.
Only one drawback to that-- You can't leave it unattended for very long anywhere there are wild panda bears.
The point about efficiency of old fashioned bikes, vs modern material e-bikes vs cars had to do with the carbon footprint/energy cost of production vs useful life (in terms of km ). That chart in the article can't possibly include fuel costs to operate (none for a simple bike vs Xmpg for a car)....and the "rented bikes" referred to those bike sharing set ups where you take a bike from the rack and leave it in a rack at your destination-- the big problem there is the abuse they sustain and need to be replaced more frequently-- all discussed in detail in the article.
The article also gets into the problem of less durable materials for parts and non-standardization of repair parts.
Only one drawback to that-- You can't leave it unattended for very long anywhere there are wild panda bears.
The point about efficiency of old fashioned bikes, vs modern material e-bikes vs cars had to do with the carbon footprint/energy cost of production vs useful life (in terms of km ). That chart in the article can't possibly include fuel costs to operate (none for a simple bike vs Xmpg for a car)....and the "rented bikes" referred to those bike sharing set ups where you take a bike from the rack and leave it in a rack at your destination-- the big problem there is the abuse they sustain and need to be replaced more frequently-- all discussed in detail in the article.
The article also gets into the problem of less durable materials for parts and non-standardization of repair parts.
Pedal bikes don’t require electricity nor to they catch fire burning homes or apartments.
I have a 12-year-old Surly Troll all purpose (non-electric) bike that I assembled myself after I bought the steel frame. It is a workhorse of a bike capable of hauling groceries on the rear rack in pannier bags, or going on a day tour or a months-long expedition tour. In the past 5 years, my odometer has recorded over 50,000 kilometers (about 31,000 miles). I ride on city streets all around here in the city of Chemnitz, on rural and forest roads, gravel trails or paths, wherever my next destination is. It is not a lightweight racing bike - the tires are 2.1" wide and the bike weighs 35 or so pounds when normally set up for my rides, without any cargo. All of the components on my bike are simple, high quality mechanical items and very, very durable. The 2x9 speed derailleur gears are a mutt's mix of Shimano front & rear derailleur, SRAM cassette and KMC chain and they work flawless. Brakes are mechanical (cable pull) disc brakes. I do all repair work myself - no bike shop has ever touched my bike. I even built and laced the wheels.
But hey, I'm 68 and maybe in 5-10 years I might get an e-bike, or perhaps get an electric motor kit and convert my old Surly Troll to an e-bike. It wouldn't be the end of the world, and it might keep me pedaling for an additional decade or so if I'm lucky.
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