1-1-2016 Today's Change in the Law.
- Thread starter flecc
- Start date
According to advice we sought from BAGB members (The Bicycle Association of Great Britain) bikes landed in the UK before this year can legally be sold with a full 15mph throttle. Bikes which arrive in the UK this year must adhere to the new rules.
Happy New Year all!
David
Happy New Year all!
David
Yes, a newsletter sent by Juicy Bikes this week confirmed this news. They have quite a few bikes that fulfill this condition as must other retailers. It looks like the throttle is going to live on a little longer than was expected!
David, is this their (BAGB members') interpretation of the law or they have had some correspondence with the DfT? How the dealer or the police are going to know if a bike is imported before certain date?
Where did you read that? The version I have seen does not mention that. It does mention that power must cut off as soon as the rider stops pedalling.
Thanks Sherman, there are quite a few differences here in the UK. We had enjoyed independent throttles until now, but have now lost them unless the pedelec is type approved. The Transport Department have indicated they will treat them as pedelecs if type approved and all other pedelec law is complied with.I'm writing this from Finnish point of view, but we are both in EU so it might interest you.
The new law kicked in here too. Before the new law throttles were not allowed and it was max 250W, the usual EU pedelec law. But now L1e-A allows max 1kW, throttles or whatever (no need to pedal), max 25 kph. It does require insurance but not registeration. Also, type approval is not needed for single, "unique" pieces (which means DIY bikes, imports by private person). I'm not sure if no need for registeration or type approval are national exemptions though. I recall seeing a slide somewhere saying registeration will not be required in Finland as an exemption..
At the same time Segways, hover boards etc were legalized
edit typo: type approval is not needed for single, "unique" pieces
The question of throttles with L1e-A is still in question in the EU and has not been settled, we may all have to wait until January 2017 for the final answer.
Registration and type approval are national matters, basically it's usage rather than construction that a nation can administer. Only cross border issues like vehicle construction are solely the province of the EU.
And here in the UK, Segways and Hoverboards are very illegal. We have a "catch-all" law, the Highway Act of 1835 which bans all motorised vehicles from the highway, meaning everything new is automatically illegal until a law is passed permitting it.
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We should copy everybody but ourselves! It's difficult to find a nation without some better law than us in transport areas.
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Or the French...
"...anyone aged 14 or over can take out on the road with as little as four hours' experience behind the wheel, sometimes not even that."
"You'll probably hear them coming first, a high-pitched whine like a sewing machine being run at full throttle. If you get stuck behind one on a windy rural lane, tant pis. Top speed is 45km per hour (28mph)."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-35210572
"...anyone aged 14 or over can take out on the road with as little as four hours' experience behind the wheel, sometimes not even that."
"You'll probably hear them coming first, a high-pitched whine like a sewing machine being run at full throttle. If you get stuck behind one on a windy rural lane, tant pis. Top speed is 45km per hour (28mph)."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-35210572
Happy New Year,
Why are we relying on advice from BAGB? Are they a government Dept or another trade body.?
Anyway,shouldn't we be seeking advice directly from the Dft?
The last document issued by the Dft was that the bikes had to be 'used by' the 1/1/2016,is this out of date now?
'Bikes landed in the UK before this year'....how do the police determine the date which bikes were landed in the UK?
There is no system to determine the precise date upon which a particular batch of bikes were imported into the UK,there is no cross reference between import documentation and build numbers.
If they advised a bottom bracket number,I may be able to advise the date that was built but I could never tell when that particular bike was imported.
This law gets more woolly by the day.
Ps....should have done my homework......BAGB ,Bicycle Association of Great Britain,are a trade body funded by the cycle industry,oh no! Not another bl..... Trade body!!! They are not even a government quango so they have absolutely no power to make such statements,the Dft could change their minds next week and say all throttles are banned!
KudosDave
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My favorite victims for ultimate downhill humiliation 
There aren't many around here though, too many hills.
Sorry the 4 kW four wheelers I am talking about
There aren't many around here though, too many hills.Sorry the 4 kW four wheelers I am talking about
Don't you think that the Chinese have been over zealous in their interpretation of EN1594? I have read some Chinese copies and some of them are very amusing. I don't have the spare 74 € to buy the actual text (in French in my case) but I am pretty sure that brake cut off is an option not an obligation - Cyclotek seems to think so in any case "not needed on modern bicycles".
The French have and make pedelecs without brake cutouts, but like us they were the first to sign up to EN15194. So I doubt that requires brake cutouts.
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Most are awful, but the low powered version of the Renault Twizy to fit the VSP market is rather different and a much higher standard. Cheaper too.My favorite victims for ultimate downhill humiliation
Sorry the 4 kW four wheelers I am talking about
I think the VSP market is ideally suited for electric power, much higher low speed torque than ic engines, and much quieter than the Lombardini 500 cc diesel that some VSPs use.
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Yep. EN15194 gives a distance limit on motor overun after the pedals have stopped being turned. On a responsive system there is no requirement for brake cut offs.
You can look it up or ask BAGB Tech support (a copy of EN15194 costs more than a few quid !).
Hi Bob,Happy New Year...re throttles....I understand we are now on import date not used by date. How do the police determine the import date for a particular bike,I have no requirement to determine which particular bike was imported on a particular date....the bottom bracket numbers are selected at random,there is no date involved and we don't always send bikes immediately they are built....some bikes sell slower than others.
I cannot see any way the police or any other government dept could determine exactly when a particular customer's bike was imported into the uk.
Imagine the situation for the police...
Well sir,I definitely saw you operating that throttle without pedalling,you are breaking the law,when did you buy it.
Yes officer I bought it it June 2016...
Gotcha....you are riding an illegal e-bike bought after 1 January 2016
Sorry Officer but you are wrong,the company who sold it to me told me that it was imported before 1 January 2016 so it's alright to use it without type approval.
I am going to investigate this further...
First problem to plod....what's type approval.
Then off to the selling company...we stopped a guy on one of your bikes who says you imported it prior to January 2016.... Not a clue officer,those bikes have been made since 2014, I don't know which one was imported in which batch,the guy could be right.
This situation could go on forever......they might as well said that all e-bikes can have full speed throttles,there is no way the police can determine import date against bottom bracket numbers.
Ridiculous conclusion.
KudosDave
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We keep a record of frame numbers as they arrive in the UK and have an audit trail back through the system for quality control. If you dont have a record of frame numbers then Iˋm not sure how you would otherwise prove the landing date.
Keeping a close track has had many benefits and now means we don't have to reconfigure controllers on bikes we have yet to build - phew!
Keeping a close track has had many benefits and now means we don't have to reconfigure controllers on bikes we have yet to build - phew!
That would be a nightmare of a job and pointless,we are only interested in the frame numbers at the point of sale. Why are you interested in the landing date?
We have no intention of reconfiguring controllers,I have enough stock to continue selling full speed throttles throughout 2016 and maybe beyond on some models,all imported prior to 1 January 2016.
Our batteries are stock rotated but the law seems only interested in e-bikes not the components.
Quote'if you don't have a record of frame numbers how do you prove the landing date'.....exactly,if I can't prove the landing date as the importer,then the police/trading standards also cannot prove the landing date!
This situation could go on for years,it's a completely pointless law....the police could not prosecute anyone because they cannot prove or disprove the landing date,unless of course the importer would be in a position to provide that information!!
Most of the cheap Chinese importers out of Birmingham don't even bother with frame numbers.
KudosDave
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