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this post was submitted on 14 Jul 2025
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You might just be in the market for a moped.
The license requirement of a vehicle is for the safety of everyone on the road, and a 20+mph vehicle is inherently dangerous no matter the shape and should be subject to regulation.
A friend and I averaged 21.2 mph over 12 miles on our bicycles the other day, with no assist. We were just rolling along. Should we be subject to regulation?
Those mopeds are pretty expensive, and add in the insurance, tags, and such and it's like, "Maybe I should just drive my car...and have air conditioning... And be faster..."
Edit - a lot of people don't seem to grasp the point I was making in the first paragraph. The previous comment said something like, "Anything over 20 mph" should be regulated, and I noted that I can ride that fast on human power, and asking if I should then have to get a license or be subject to some regulation. I'm pointing out the flaw in that comment. Maybe op should have said,, "anything motorized", I don't know.
You were absolutely not "rolling along." It was either mostly downhill or you were working pretty hard, as those are cat-3 race speeds. The vast majority of people can't sustain those speeds, and most of those who can know how to behave and have the skills to actually ride at that level.
The entire problem with these e bikes is that anyone can got off the couch and ride far beyond their actual skill level.
No duh we were working hard.
You're missing the point. The comment I replied to said that anything above 20 mph should be regulated. I was pointing out that I can apparently do that, and therefore apparently should be regulated. I actually know a number of cyclists that can do that, come to think of it.
The difference is with an ebike everyone can get up to that speed, you and your friend on the other hand is trained to be that fast. Also 33kmph± average isn't really a norm, it's usually around 16kmph - 18kmph, so you're the outlier. The limitation is not on how fast you travel with your bike, it's how fast the ebike is capable of going without effort from the rider.
It's not really that hard to understand the nuance.