Directgov advice about "off road" buttons

[Patrick]

I just found a page that I hadn't seen before on the direct gov website about Electrically Assisted Pedal Cycles (EAPCs)

Electrically assisted pedal cycles in Great Britain : Directgov - Motoring

It says that e-bikes "that have a switch offering a temporary increase in top speed, often advertised as an ‘off road’ facility" don't qualify as EAPCs, so they need type approval, registration, a helmet etc.

This is the first time I've seen an explicit statement about this.

Patrick

 

[eddieo]

Blimey!

 

[Straylight]

*sigh* These guys have no sense of fun....

Well, I'm not going to tell anyone I've got one.......DOH!

 

[Mussels]

How reliable is the directgov website? When I've looked before for things I've got the impression it's on par with Wikipedia and to be taken with a pinch of salt.

 

[eddieo]

How reliable is the directgov website? When I've looked before for things I've got the impression it's on par with Wikipedia and to be taken with a pinch of salt.

I was kinda thinking that way myself...

reading through it it goes on about insurance, crash helmet, tax etc...AND a driving licence!

Now I know from other chats on here that even if restrictions were in place for a more powerful bike type that a licence was thought to be unnecessary.

 

[Bigbee]

extract below.

It is the understanding?Sounds to me like theyre not 100% sure??Arent they the people who should know?Who makes the rules?

"It is the understanding of the Department for Transport (DfT) that these vehicles do not meet the EAPC requirements. You’ll need to type approve, register and tax the pedal cycle. You’ll also need a driving licence and to wear a motorcycle helmet."

 

[Barnowl]

offering a temporary increase in top speed,
Patrick

Then it wouldn't be top speed would it.

If had such a button I'd be happy to just keep quiet. You'd think with all the transport problems we'd got this would be on the harmless and forget list.

 

[Mussels]

extract below.

It is the understanding?Sounds to me like theyre not 100% sure??Arent they the people who should know?Who makes the rules?

"It is the understanding of the Department for Transport (DfT) that these vehicles do not meet the EAPC requirements. You’ll need to type approve, register and tax the pedal cycle. You’ll also need a driving licence and to wear a motorcycle helmet."

It's not who makes the rules you need to be concerned with, the people that matter are the ones who interpret the rules and you can only guess what they will say.

 

[GT3]

Does anyone have a copy of the two relevant Statutory Instruments they can scan or host? I've searched and can only find references. They are too old to appear on the OPSI site and I'm too stationary for the Stationery Office.

 

[flecc]

This is the key fact:

the electric motor must not be able to propel the pedal cycle when it’s travelling more than 15 miles per hour

which means that "off road" buttons etc are illegal. An e-bike equipped with one is most definitely a motor vehicle under both British and EU law (there is no UK law on e-bikes), and in addition to registration, free tax disc, insurance, motor cycle type crash helmet etc, a group P driving licence is necessary. If the licence is provisional a CBT course will be compulsory.

Daft maybe, but that's the law.

If the speed can only be increased by "mechanical" alteration when not riding, such as a wiring disconnection, the bike is legal.

Also bear in mind that the website linked to above is for the British regulations, not the EU's different ones that also technically apply and which will be enforced in due course.
.

 

[Alex728]

It's not who makes the rules you need to be concerned with, the people that matter are the ones who interpret the rules and you can only guess what they will say.

The most popular button of this nature is a stock item at Wuxing which could arguably used for all manner of purposes, especially with a culture of DIY e-bikes and customisation of existing models. Surely its going to be difficult to prove exactly what the button is used for and unless someone is riding dangerously is surely going difficult to enforce, unless (rather worryingly) traffic police units are being asked to look for this...

and what happens to all the 2008 Wispers the Heddlu in North Wales have?

 

[Barnowl]

I can't help thinking of all those many, many hundreds of thousands of car drivers. No tax and insurance, bald tyres, blind or otherwise medically unfit to drive, illegal number plates, no MOT, ringed cars, speeding, drunk, drugged, false number plates, mobile phones, shaving, sleeping etc etc. Sort of puts a button that's going to give you an extra couple of MPH assistance on your bicycle into perspective.

 

[Straylight]

and what happens to all the 2008 Wispers the Heddlu in North Wales have?

That's ok, as long as they only hit the button when using their blue lights and sirens .

 

[Alex728]

That's ok, as long as the only hit the button when using their blue lights and sirens .

that may almost even be quite close to the truth as emergency service bikes are actually equpped with blue lights and sirens (such as the Eastamb first responder cycles seen in pedestrianised East Anglian towns..).

 

[Alex728]

I can't help thinking of all those many, many hundreds of thousands of car drivers. No tax and insurance, bald tyres, blind or otherwise medically unfit to drive, illegal number plates, no MOT, ringed cars, speeding, drunk, drugged, false number plates, mobile phones, shaving, sleeping etc etc. Sort of puts a button that's going to give you an extra couple of MPH assisance into perspective.

in moral terms yes, but if coppers are determined to bust people for a traffic violation (irrespective of the nature of the vehicle and the type of crime) they will find some reason to do so..

 

[Straylight]

I'd say that in urban areas, the police have far more important things to worry about, and in the country there simply isn't the police presence. I live fairly close to a large police station, and in the year that I've lived here, I can count the number of times I've seen a traffic patrol car (or a police car of any kind) on one hand.

 

[Patrick]

My guess is that the biggest risk would be if you were in an accident and there was an investigation which brought up the fact that you were actually riding an unregistered, unapproved motor vehicle without insurance at the time.

 

[eddieo]

But many cyclists achieve well over 15 mph, who is to say what proportion is electric and what rider effort

 

[Alex728]

I'd say that in urban areas, the police have far more important things to worry about, and in the country there simply isn't the police presence. I live fairly close to a large police station, and in the year that I've lived here, I can count the number of times I've seen a traffic patrol car (or a police car of any kind) on one hand.

round here there's the highest traffic presence I have seen outside metpol area, though to be fair they seem to be concentrating on motorists.

TBH I think the real issue is going to be the quality of people's riding and whether they are involved in RTC's against pedestrians or other cyclists at high speed..

 

[flecc]

Despite the illegality of "boost button" e-bikes, the risks of prosecution are practically nil, even after an accident which is investigated. In most cases we are speaking of a very minor increase, like to 18 mph.

It's relevant that police accident investigators are traffic division officers who for the most part do not work in an environment where vehicles are speed restricted. Their whole emphasis where speed is concerned is on driver responsibility to stick to limits and that is what they concentrate on in any investigation, looking for any individual guilt. Since as traffic officers they work with road speed limits of between 20 mph and 70 mph, any slight increase in vehicle capability below any of those is very unlikely to be thought of as the main basis for the cause of an accident.

They are professionals and will look for the real cause(s) and not be distracted by irrelevant side issues.
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