The NYTimes is once again trashing the most promising mobility innovation of the 21st century
cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/16133154
Link to original Tweet: https://x.com/DavidZipper/status/1795048724021862898
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Mass transit probaby has less overhead
Compared to? Cars? Yes, absolutely.
To e-bikes? Hard to tell, but it's easier to roll out e-bikes and repaint traffic lines then it is to install new track and e-bikes aren't tied to a schedule.
How many charging stations will be available? At what cost? And if they are fought against by cities fully invested in.mass transit, who covers the costs to clear that up?
How many charging stations will be available? At what cost?
The fuck are those questions? You want a detailed roll out plan for a hypothetical city? No know I can't answer that question with any useful details. It's going to be different for every city, but as many as necessary.
And if they are fought against by cities fully invested in.mass transit
Why would a city that already has mass transit plans need a full on e-bike plan? But even with busses and trains, limited e-bikes can still be useful for people who can't work on a schedule, the mass transit path is inconvenient, or live far enough away from the bus/train stations and want to e-bike to them.
who covers the costs to clear that up?
The fuck is this? E-bikes aren't forever. The bikes and charging stations require maintenance and repair. If you want to discontinue them, just come up with a sunsetting plan. Who pays for them? Either the state via taxes or a private entity. Citibike is already planning e-bike rollout. Just follow that model.
Fair enough. But all of that does require a significant investment, like you said, that will vary by location. Mass transit being already deployed has an advantage over new services like ebikes mainly due to build-out times and costs. Like any new tech, adoption is dependent on ease of access and use. Many users may find ebikes preferable if they can get to one easily and cheaply, but if the lifespan is cut short that ease is negated. There was a story a couple years ago about an ebike company that folded because there was insufficient usage. Cant remember which city it happened in but it likely soured that market for any future attempts.