u/gian — gian

There’s a whole class of electric vehicles being held back by regulation. We can slap electro motors on wheels and bicycles are not the only vehicles you can build with that tech. Many EU countries are e.g. banning throttles on eBikes, but why are we forcing all those delivery drivers to pedal the whole day?

Fine by me, just say them to obtain a driver's license and insurance for a scooter, since basicaly it is what they would drive. Or drop the need of the license for the scooters and light bike.

The point is that a ebike with a throttles is basically a scooter (or bike) and then it is a different things, with differnt rules.

The problem is that a licence is expensive as fuck here in Germany. If I wanted to upgrade my drivers licence to those 125 motorcycles, that will be around 800€. A full motorcycle licence is several thousands of Euros.

Damn, and I was thinking that in Italy licences are expensive...

So a young person can just hop on a bicycle with a motor for free or “simply buy a small bike” with costs of several thousands of Euros. It would make sense if we bring the cost of thoses licences down.

The problem is that this way you would have a young person on what is basically a bike but without even the smallest knowlegde of how to behave on a public road.

Yeah and that is exactly what I wanted to say: Why is a motor assisted thing that can go 25km/h a different thing from a motor assisted thing that can go 25km/h?

Probably they follow different rules to be approved to be on the street.

I’m not talking about full motorcycles, but to give you an exemple: I own an eBike. There is a throttle available that would let me cruise at up to 25km/h without pedaling. That is totally illegal to install here, because that would make it a legally totally different thing and that would e.g. also prevent me from using my current brakes or to install the current tires. Which makes no sense - the risks are the same, brakes and tires are of course normal bicycling components which are totally fine to use at 25km/h, but the regulation is crap.

This way you basically made out a scooter out of your bike, that is what the regulation probably want to avoid.

There’s a whole class of electric vehicles being held back by regulation. We can slap electro motors on wheels and bicycles are not the only vehicles you can build with that tech. Many EU countries are e.g. banning throttles on eBikes, but why are we forcing all those delivery drivers to pedal the whole day? Just give them a gas throttle. For many eBikes uses it really doesn’t make sense to include the whole bicycle complexity of gears, chains, shifting and so on. Just give them a motor and a throttle.

Then they could simply buy a small bike, with all the attached rules, like driver's license and so on.

The point is that a ebike and a bike are two _separated_ things that follow different rules.

Killing the eBike with additional rules, insurance, mandatory inspections and so on would be absolutely idiotic and a good business model for insurances, car companies and so on, so I’m really afraid that this could happen

Rules are imposed as consequences.

Lidl is better at confusing customers when similar products are scattered in 5 different places in the market.

No brand is immune to this, it is intended.

I am unfamiliar with rules regarding traffic-worthiness of a bicycle, but in germany, your bike requires certain equipment to be fitted to the bike - reflectors on the spokes, front and rear light at night, etc. Additionally, you’re not allowed to drive in the wrong direction, unless specifically allowed to with a street sign (one-way-streets often allow for ciclysts to drive against the direction)

Basically the same rules we have in Italy except the wrong direction one, which state basically that cyclists can go the wrong direction if the road is wide enough. No specification about the enough part btw.

If those rules do exist in a similar fashion already: cyclists are apparently not following those rules, adding another rule for high-viz-gear is most likely not going to be followed either. Maybe consider enforcing the existing rules before adding another rule.

Agree here. But I still think that a high viz jacket is better than the small light and reflector you use on a bicycles, expecially in low light conditions

I agree. But the problem is not to connect a small town with the larger one, is to connect the small town with the next small one where maybe there is the mall, or the other one where there is the school (higher level) or other services you need.

The point is that normally you have a relatively good connection to the big city of the area, but the connections between the small towns around it are patchy, that is what make you drive to the next small town instead of using the train or bus.

Nah, just tell him that in exchange of 10% tariff all the big tech companies will pay the taxes for the profits they do in EU.

Renewable energies,

And where do you think we buy solar panels ? (Yes, I know, not the only renewable energy)

But in the general sense he is right

And thern EU will impose fines... and I am afraid that EU could impose fines that are way higher than what Elon can pay...

But Hungary has this coming...

The whole country outside of four urban centres is an absolute nightmare if you don’t drive, and just not conductive to establishing a family anywhere.

To be honest I don't think this is a specific problem of Ireland, outside the urban centers the only option to move is to drive. There is not a critical mass for a public transportation system, expecially if you need to connect many small (< 20k people) urban centers.

That would be stupid, but that a bicyclists use a high visibility jacket is not, too many time on the road (in Italy, but I suppose everywhere else) you cross bicyclists at night or late evening that are basically invisible until the last moment: no light, wear black clothes (and often in the wrong direction).

True, maybe also the road should be better illuminated, but that a bicyclists make himself visible is not a stupid idea.