Public charging points for electric bikes?

[flecc]

It's a shame that the charger can't be built into the battery - I suppose it could but it wouldn't look pretty...

Some used to be built in, the original Giant Lafree with a lead acid battery had it's charger integral, but it was a big heavy bike.
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[Alex728]

Sounds like a great idea... The government needs to get organised on this and launch some scheme where they subsidise the cost and make a national scheme any businesses can join..common sticker in the window type of thing.. that would be great if we started seeing outlets like that popping up everywhere and an online map.

This is precisely what they appear to have done in NL, although I'm as yet unsure how much public sector subsidy is involved. Bear in mind I struggle with delving into Council type documents and procedures in English, so it will take me longer to unearth this sort of info in Dutch.

Although Frank makes a good point about robustness, for an e-bike I don't think its that much of a bind carrying the charger in your pannier bag, even the comparatively large Wisper charger is no worse than the sort of PSU the laptops of the late 80s/early 90s used. when I go to my friends who live near the Norfolk border I just put the charger in the bag and it survives the 26 mile journey on what is not the best of roads..

 

[Barry Heaven]

This sort of service in the UK would be ideal: Google Maps adds electric vehicle charging stations — Autoblog Green

Would still need bikes that can use the connector though.

 

[Barry Heaven]

I took a ride today to Hillers: A H Hilllers - Quality local produce farmshop garden cafe display gardens in Warwickshire.

A nice little places with a farm shop, gift shop, cafe and gardens. I rang ahead and asked if they were ok with me charging my battery while I had lunch at the cafe. They were agreeable and very happy to accommodate. They arranged for me to plug it in in a little locked back office.

I wonder if there is some means of creating a list of businesses that we know of that are happy to charge batteries? Sounds like a win-win. For a very small cost they get more custom and we get batteries charged for an increased riding range.

 

[funkylyn]

Looks a lovely place.
I havent found any problems with people agreeing to a quick charge whilst having lunch/coffee etc.
The first place I asked was a farm cafe on the left halfway between bridport and abbetsbury, and although a bit startled when I asked, I assured them it used very little electric and they let me plug it in right next to our table !
I think a list of places, preferably with people better than me at remembering the name of the place would be a really good idea and free publicity for the businesses.
Is there some way of organizing a list quite easily for members to add to on the forum ?

 

[Barry Heaven]

Looks a lovely place.
I havent found any problems with people agreeing to a quick charge whilst having lunch/coffee etc.
The first place I asked was a farm cafe on the left halfway between bridport and abbetsbury, and although a bit startled when I asked, I assured them it used very little electric and they let me plug it in right next to our table !
I think a list of places, preferably with people better than me at remembering the name of the place would be a really good idea and free publicity for the businesses.
Is there some way of organizing a list quite easily for members to add to on the forum ?

When I first spoke to Hillers they were a bit bemused until I explained that it only needed a standard socket and consumed about the same power a a laptop computer. Putting it that way gives a quick visualisation of what the chargers do, i.e. you are not plugging in something that is burning kilowatt hours!

 

[funkylyn]

When I first spoke to Hillers they were a bit bemused until I explained that it only needed a standard socket and consumed about the same power a a laptop computer. Putting it that way gives a quick visualisation of what the chargers do, i.e. you are not plugging in something that is burning kilowatt hours!

Thats a really good idea comparing it to a laptop

 

[flecc]

It should be sufficient to say that the cost of a full charge taking 3 to 5 hours is between 5 and 10 pence, depending on battery size. Less of course for shorter part charges.
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[Barry Heaven]

I came across this which, taking it at face value, is the launch of the first common standard for Light Electric Vehicles (including pedelecs). There are some big players behind this including Panasonic and BionX. Maybe this will be the future for pedelecs all sharing compatible systems, including battery charging connectors. Clearly early days for this so will be interesting to see how it develops.

EnergyBus Standard (EBS) to be Unveiled in Taipei - ExtraEnergy.org

 

[donnoirf]

looked at this site a few times before. it seems to indicate that ebikes can be charged via these stations & gives a list of locations for charging all across the country

they even seem to advertise a good few ebikes

Charging Station Locations - Smartebike.co.uk Electric Bikes Greater London

 

[Barry Heaven]

looked at this site a few times before. it seems to indicate that ebikes can be charged via these stations & gives a list of locations for charging all across the country

they even seem to advertise a good few ebikes

Charging Station Locations - Smartebike.co.uk Electric Bikes Greater London

Interesting. Although it has a yellow cord for plugging into electric cars, the other end is a standard 240 volts/13 amp socket into which you could plug an ebike charger. It would, of course, only work if you could plug directly into an on-board charger.

Not one near me though unfortunately.

 

[wurly]

Interesting to hear of peoples experiences when asking to charge up a battery. I have found that explaining how much electricity is used is comparable to have a 100w light bulb powered for the same amount of time(approx). Nevertheless they still seem to think it's going to bankrupt their business unless you offer a substanstial reward for doing so. To say they are wary would be an understatement. I'm not sure many understand kilowatts or the fractions of kilowatts from a monetary point of view.

Another thing might be insurance liability for them. Do your chargers display an indate PAT tested certificate? mine don't....yet!

I am sure there are many places that would let you charge an ebike for customers but (i think) there maybe more that are uncomfortable with the idea. Why not have some 'ebikers friendly' stickers made we can give out to be displayed once you have assured them it's good for their business?
I would donate some cash towards it. It can't be that expensive to have a few hundred made.

Question for Funkylyn, would that cafe between Bridport and Abbotsbury be the Hive Beach cafe?
I'm planning a ride down to Westbay from Yeovil sometime soon and it would be nice to know that i can get the pack recharged before the ride home.

 

[jbond]

I got a reply from pod POD Point - Next Generation Electric Vehicle Charging Network who are the other supplier of public charging points. All their points have a standard 13a socket.

This is not only about E-Bike charging as there are lots of mobile devices that could do with a charging point now, especially as increased function means battery life of less than a day. Laptops, iPhones, iPods all come to mind. We really should encourage cafes, restaurants, petrol stations, train stations, airport lounges and so on to provide easily accessible 13A sockets for on the go charging. A quick top up charge of our removable batteries is just one more use. From our point of view making the charger easy to carry as well as making the battery easily removable is just one more design criteria. And I don't really see why a transformerless battery charger should be any less robust than the battery itself. And given how small laptop chargers are now, E-Bike chargers should go the same way.

 

[Mussels]

I got a reply from pod POD Point - Next Generation Electric Vehicle Charging Network who are the other supplier of public charging points. All their points have a standard 13a socket.

This is not only about E-Bike charging as there are lots of mobile devices that could do with a charging point now, especially as increased function means battery life of less than a day. Laptops, iPhones, iPods all come to mind. We really should encourage cafes, restaurants, petrol stations, train stations, airport lounges and so on to provide easily accessible 13A sockets for on the go charging. A quick top up charge of our removable batteries is just one more use. From our point of view making the charger easy to carry as well as making the battery easily removable is just one more design criteria. And I don't really see why a transformerless battery charger should be any less robust than the battery itself. And given how small laptop chargers are now, E-Bike chargers should go the same way.

I can see a problem with that as it takes much longer to charge a battery than drink a coffee, people will be tying up their seats and sockets but not spending any money.

 

[jbond]

I can see a problem with that as it takes much longer to charge a battery than drink a coffee, people will be tying up their seats and sockets but not spending any money.

Sure. But a half hour charge might be enough to get you home.

 

[Dan900]

My Dental Practice in NW London has a secure bike park with a charger for eBikes outside; free for anyone to use.

www.ecladent.co.uk