Pandemic Turns New Yorkers into eBike Enthusiasts
The coronavirus crisis has taken its toll on many small businesses — eBike sellers, meanwhile, are thriving
Almost a year into the COVID-19 global pandemic, we’ve grown accustomed to hearing about business owners struggling. Some of them are battling to simply stay afloat, others are shutting down completely. For some, however, it’s been quite the opposite: That’s the story of Rick Bernstein, one of hundreds of eBike sellers around New York. “In the summer, I had a three-month waiting list for my eBikes,” he said.
Bernstein is the owner of NYC Adventure eBike Tours on Amsterdam Avenue, in the heart of Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Before the pandemic, he repaired bikes and organized tours out of his garage on the Upper East Side, to avoid rent costs. It was only when rent prices tumbled amidst the COVID crisis that he could finally afford a storefront. Bernstein says 2020 was the best year for his business since he began in 2016.
Bernstein’s success story is part of a larger trend, encompassing the whole city. New Yorkers’ skepticism toward public transport gave rise to a cycling surge. While classic bikes still lead the market, eBikes are undergoing an unprecedented boom. In April alone, US eBike sales surged by 92 percent. In recent years, eBikes have become much lighter, their batteries cheaper, and so popular that European industry experts predict a growth from 3.7 million to 17 million per year in the next decade. In June, after years of hesitation, the New York City Council finally legalized all eBikes with a top speed of 25 mph.
David Cohn, one of Bernstein’s customers, bought an eBike in 2019 and hasn’t abandoned it since. It’s faster in traffic than a car, he says, and easier to park. Come rain or shine, cycling has become his sole mode of transportation, even in the January 40-degree cold. And his outlook on the city itself has changed. “I’ve never seen New York like I do when I cycle — it’s the experience of freedom,” he says.
Cohn is not alone in his newfound love of eBiking. “When people noticed the convenience that cycling can offer during the lockdown months, they ended up sticking with it through the winter,” said Bahij Chancey, board member of advocacy group Transportation Alternatives. The most recent data from NYC DOT confirm this, showing a 30% increase in bike counts on East River Bridges between October 2019 and October 2020. Bike New York calculated that, while a slight decline in bike usage in winter is typical, numbers are still sharply higher than in 2019.
The city is responding to the surge in cycling with moves to make some areas more bike-friendly. On January 28th, The New York Times reported that there are plans to close a lane on both the Brooklyn and Queensboro Bridges to reserve them for cyclists. “My industry is in a boom,” Bernstein said. “People are starting to consider eBikes as a means of transportation, not only as a Sunday recreational activity.”
