[sustran] Fwd: electric bicycles catch on in China

[Paul Barter]

Straits Times on-line
http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/asia/story/0,1870,102354,00.html?

FEB 12, 2002 
Electric bicycles catch on in China

It has become so popular that the authorities are having to decide about
licensing the vehicle and collecting taxes 

By David Hsieh 
STRAITS TIMES CHINA BUREAU 

BEIJING - Handy, speedy and non-polluting electric bicycles are fast
becoming a permanent fixture on the urban commuting scene.

But traffic authorities are mulling over how to deal with problems created
by the new motorised vehicles.

A rare commodity a couple of years ago, sales of electric bicycles surged in
China last year, topping 55,000 units in Beijing and 70,000 in Shanghai.

Electric bikes, which may eventually replace 10 to 20 per cent of ordinary
bicycles in China, are now coveted as one of the sandajian or the three most
desirable consumer durables to own. The other two are high resolution
television and mobile phones.

Prices of these bikes range from 2,000 yuan (S$443) to as much as 3,900
yuan, a little steep but still affordable for most urban residents.

While China's chambers of industry and commerce see electric bikes as a new
tax cow, the traffic authorities worry about this new breed of vehicle that
is 'neither a horse nor a donkey', meaning it is a cross between motorised
and non-motorised bikes.

Indeed, its hybrid status has generated much debate among manufacturers,
scholars and traffic officials.

At present, electric bikes are banned in central Wuhan and south-eastern
Fuzhou but permitted and even encouraged in Shanghai, to replace the over
700,000 motorcycles currently in use.

In Beijing, the traffic authorities have yet to issue licences pending a new
by-law but there are no fines for owners who use them.

Over the past year, Beijing lawmakers have submitted proposals to legalise
the bikes. A couple of weeks ago, a conference was held in the capital to
call for speedy action.

Mr Wang Zhenwu, who commutes every day on his Tianjin-made Daan Ronald
electric bike, is not worried that his bike is unlicensed.

'The cops do not bother me. Some are even envious. One said to me, 'just
keep on riding; sooner or later, they will make a law and plates will be
issued',' he said.

Professor He Zuoxiu, a leading scientist and advocate of electric bicycles,
argued that restrictions should be imposed on the speed limit.

He suggested capping it at 24 kmh, going by the international standard. So,
while faster than conventional bicycles, electric bikes can still be ridden
in the bicycle lane.

'This way, it would not pose a big headache for the police,' he explained.
He expects a new law to be introduced by the end of this year, if not before
July.

Another issue is the potential for secondary pollution produced in the
disposal of lead batteries used on the bikes. But, manufacturers and
retailers disagree.
'Lead batteries for cars pose a much bigger recycling problem than it would
ever be for bicycles. All manufacturers have reached a covenant on battery
recycling. So, this issue has been essentially resolved,' said Mr Deng Xin,
General Manager of Shanghai Elite Electric Vehicles Co Ltd, a wholly-owned
Singapore concern and the third largest maker in China.

Copyright @ 2002 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.
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Forwarded for the purpose of education and research