Oct 29 2012
As the number of e-bikes explodes across Europe, experts are saying that they are rapidly altering how people traverse urban areas. CTEK, a leading global smart battery charger brand, says the rise of e-bikes signifies how important batteries have become and highlights the pivotal role they will play in the evolution of transportation.
Electronically assisted bikes offer several advantages to the urban commuter. They provide the freedom and flexibility of bicycle, with the added boost of electric propulsion, and people don't need to have special training, a licence, or insurance to operate them. E-bikes expand the demographic of potential cyclists from being comprised solely of the young and athletic to including older and less active people. Additionally, they are said to be safer for use in congested areas as they deliver extra acceleration to allow riders to move with traffic more easily, especially in the case of moving off from traffic lights.
According to a report compiled in part by the Association of the European Bicycle Industry (COLIBI), 700,000 e-bikes were sold in Western Europe last year. This is especially impressive considering the corresponding figure for electric cars was only around 11,500. Germany alone saw sales of 310,000 e-bikes, a 55 per cent increase over the previous year.
At the heart of the e-bike revolution are the devices that make it all possible - the batteries that propel them. E-bikes run on a wide variety of different battery types, depending on the model and the user's needs. They are traditionally comprised of lead-acid models, although lithium-ion batteries are becoming popular, and range in voltage from 12V to 36V, again to offer a variety of power options for consumers.
Jan-Ulf Soderberg, head of brand and marketing at CTEK, says: "E-bikes are another great example of how batteries are changing the course of transportation. These small devices are making big waves through simple solutions to modern problems of urban congestion, pollution, and diminishing fossil fuels.
"Of course, as a leading developer of smart battery chargers we encourage people recognise the importance of proper battery maintenance by buying the best support for their e-bikes' batteries. CTEK has several products that could charge, condition, and protect the 12V to 24V lead-acid batteries used by many models of e-bikes. If it is something you rely upon to get to work, you want to make sure that it is fully charged and ready to go!"
Source: http://www.ctek.com