Following widespread media coverage of Simon Cowell’s ‘e-bike accident’, the UK’s Bicycle Association has released a statement to clarify that the ‘electric bike’ Cowell was riding at the time would be classed as an electric motorbike in the UK.
The BA cite reports that the vehicle he was riding when the accident happened was a 15kW Swind EB-01 with a top speed of 60mph – which therefore has ‘almost nothing in common in technical or safety’ terms with what is usually termed an electric bike in the UK.
BA say: “UK e-bikes (EAPCs) have an excellent safety record and the assistance power is of the same order of magnitude that riders can apply by pedalling. There is very little risk of any electric bike bought in the UK causing an unintentional wheelie.”
Cowell himself, now recovering from a broken back, referred to the bike as an ‘electric trail bike’, for which people should ‘read the manual before you ride it for the first time’.
