E-bike programs, other green transit efforts are sprouting throughout the state

Long Beach aims to launch an e-bike lending program to provide residents with up to 40 bikes — in one of the latest efforts in California to increase accessibility with green transportation.

The city is seeking a vendor to provide standard, cargo and tricycle e-bikes and equipment including helmets and locks. The program, which is expected to start before the end of the year, will allow residents to check out the electric vehicles for up to three months at no cost.

“Cycling removes us from our bubbles and brings us into more human contact and connection,” said Reed Sherlock, a transportation planner overseeing the Long Beach pilot.

The Long Beach effort reflects a surge in state and municipal programs to provide environmentally friendly modes of travel, including e-bikes, electric cars and zero-emission buses. The programs are intended to improve local transportation without adding to the emissions and noise generated by gasguzzling cars and buses.

E-bike sales across the country have increased in the last several years, with many consumers choosing them as an eco-friendly alternative to driving without the hassle of finding parking.

But in at least one cities, the increase in e-bike riders has led to a rise in bike accidents, prompting local authorities to crack down on motorists who ignore safe-driving rules around bicyclists.

Experts also say that although owning an e-bike is significantly less expensive than owning a car, they are not cheap, requiring an investment of a couple of thousands of dollars.

In Long Beach, officials said the e-bike library program will increase familiarity and ridership of this zero-emission form of traveling. The bicycles are equipped with fully operable pedals and an electric motor for an extra boost. The cargo models include extra seats for children and space for groceries.

“Bicycling is a public good,” Sherlock said. “Like access to books through libraries, bicycling can empower communities, regardless of age, and provide more possibilities for access to transportation.”

Long Beach will reserve two-thirds of the bikes for residents enrolled in income assistance programs who “just don’t have the financial capability to have a car as their primary mode of transportation,” Sherlock said.

The California Air Resources Board plans to launch an e-bike incentive program this fall in response to growing interest across the state. The program will target lowincome residents and those who live in “disadvantaged” communities, and will offer rebates of $1,000 off a standard e-bike, with an additional $750 discount for larger bikes.

E-bike pilot programs like this have already cropped up in cities across the state. Pasadena launched a pilot program in July that will provide rebates between $500 and $1,000 for residents who purchase an e-bike in the city. In Berkeley, more than 600 low-income residents applied to be part of an e-bike lottery program earlier this year. The project provided 56 households with bikes to use through next May.