The problem with e-bike subsidies like this is that they require buying from a local retailer. It’s great for small business, I guess, but it means the final cost even after the rebate ends up higher than buying a direct-sell brand (e.g. Lectric, Rad) — let alone sketchy eBay junk — unsubsidized.
They need to think about whether their goal is “buy local” or to actually get people on bikes.
This is indeed a valid consideration. At the same time, ebikes open doors for people that maybe haven’t ridden a bicycle since childhood, and might not know the first thing about assembling – let alone maintaining – a bicycle made for transportation, rather than as a children’s toy. Throw in the whole (somewhat misplaced) concern over cheap batteries bursting into flames and it’s not totally outside reason why the Colorado government went in this direction. Encouraging/subsidizing local bike shops as part of the rollout of ebikes could be viewed as taking the long-term approach.
The problem with e-bike subsidies like this is that they require buying from a local retailer. It’s great for small business, I guess, but it means the final cost even after the rebate ends up higher than buying a direct-sell brand (e.g. Lectric, Rad) — let alone sketchy eBay junk — unsubsidized.
They need to think about whether their goal is “buy local” or to actually get people on bikes.
This is indeed a valid consideration. At the same time, ebikes open doors for people that maybe haven’t ridden a bicycle since childhood, and might not know the first thing about assembling – let alone maintaining – a bicycle made for transportation, rather than as a children’s toy. Throw in the whole (somewhat misplaced) concern over cheap batteries bursting into flames and it’s not totally outside reason why the Colorado government went in this direction. Encouraging/subsidizing local bike shops as part of the rollout of ebikes could be viewed as taking the long-term approach.