Tag Archive: germany

  1. E-bikes in the fast lane: record year reported for Germany’s bicycle trade

    Comments Off on E-bikes in the fast lane: record year reported for Germany’s bicycle trade

    Source: ZIV

    The ZIV Bicycle Industry Association and VDZ Association of the German Bicycle Trade have published market figures for bicycles and e-bikes in 2022, reporting another record year for the German bicycle trade.

    E-bike production in Germany reached an all-time high, increasing to 1.72 million units (+20% from 2021), while sales also reached a new peak with 2.2 million units sold (+10% from 2021). A key driver of this growth is the clear trend towards second bikes. In addition to an urban bike or e-bike, consumers often opt for a second sporty or cargo bike.

    E-bikes hold a market share of 48% in Germany and, according to Burkhard Stork (Managing Director of the ZIV), are expected to overtake non-motorised bicycles in terms of unit numbers for the first time this year. In some product categories, such as mountain and cargo bikes, there is now a clear dominance for power-assisted bikes.

    The average sales price including VAT across all sales channels and models was €2,800 for e-bikes (this data includes the increasing share of high-priced cargo bikes, which pushes up the average price). Demands have changed and customers today want higher quality components, such as the gearshift, brakes, tires, and lighting, as well as a strong battery, suspension, app connection, good design, and long service life.

    The ZIV estimates the total stock of e-bikes in Germany at the end of 2022 to be 9.8 million units, meaning that there are significantly more than 10 million e-bikes on the road today. With regards to health benefits and mobility transition, e-bikes are used much more often and over longer distances; an average of 1,500 to 2,000 kilometres per year.

    E-mountain bikes have overtaken e-trekking bikes as the most popular type of e-bike among buyers, a shift that occurred in 2021 and has continued in 2022. There were 836,000 e-mountain bikes sold in 2022 (+23% from 2021), compared to 616,000 e-trekking bikes (-4% from 2021). In addition to e-mountain bikes, the biggest increases in demand have been for sporty e-bikes such as road, gravel, and fitness bikes, as well as e-cargo bikes and speed pedelecs.

    1.45 million e-bikes were imported in 2022, with the share of imports from EU countries being around 69% and the import share from Asia increasing slightly to 27%. This is due to the expansion of production in the EU/production sites in neighbouring EU countries, independence within the EU from developments in customs, and anti-dumping duty on imports of e-bikes from China.

    Around 98% of e-bike exports went to countries in the EU and EFTA. The Netherlands remained the most important export country with 24% (139,000 units), however this represents a significant decrease compared to 2021 (34% or 209,000 units). Austria and France followed at a distance with 12% each (same as 2021), Switzerland with 11% (+9% from 2021), Belgium with 11% (+8% from 2021), and Italy with 6% (same as 2021).

    Read the full report here.

  2. Johnson Electric acquires a majority stake in Pendix GmbH, provider of electric drives and e-bikes

    Comments Off on Johnson Electric acquires a majority stake in Pendix GmbH, provider of electric drives and e-bikes

    Source: Johnson Electric

    Johnson Electric announces the acquisition of an 80% stake in LEVA-EU member Pendix GmbH, a well-established technology-driven market player in the e-bike industry. Based in Zwickau, Germany, Pendix designs, manufactures, and brings complete electric cargo bikes and electric drives for bicycles to market. Pendix’s offering combines leading innovation with an extremely high level of product reliability.

    “By welcoming Pendix as part of Johnson Electric Group, we are expanding our e-mobility offering and entering the e-bike market. With Johnson Electric’s industrial scale and global reach together with Pendix’s expertise in the e-bike sector, we are positioning ourselves into a fast-growing and innovative industry,” said Dr. Patrick Wang, Chairman and CEO of Johnson Electric.

    “Our engineering center in Dresden, Germany, is in close proximity to Zwickau. This will enable close collaboration with the highly skilled Pendix team. We’re excited about expanding into the e-bike sector, and by doing so we hope to create a more sustainable future for personal mobility,” added Austin Wang, Senior Vice President of Johnson Electric.

    All Pendix founders, who started the company in 2013, will remain shareholders of Pendix and continue in their active management roles to lead the business growth plans.

    “We are extremely pleased to join such a reputable company as Johnson Electric and are convinced that our common passions for innovation and engineering perfection together with a strong cultural fit are a great foundation for reaching the next level of success,” commented Thomas Herzog, co-founder and CEO of Pendix GmbH.

  3. Laka’s insurance extends to Germany with the support of Porsche

    Comments Off on Laka’s insurance extends to Germany with the support of Porsche

    Source: SazBike, M. Huber

    LEVA-EU member Laka, a bicycle insurer based in London, has now launched its service in Germany thanks to support from Porsche Ventures. In its initial stage, the brand will offer digital insurance products in these regions.

    Laka insurance is now available for all bicycles in Germany, including a partnership with Cyklaer e-bikes. Service providers in Germany under Laka insurance include Decathalon, Raleigh, Le Col, and Dockr. As announced in June, this development is facilitated by support from Porsche Ventures.

    Maxim Huber writes, “The insurance provider promises to only bill customers for the actual costs of claims submitted in the previous month. Insured persons should benefit from lower prices with fewer claims, while members are protected from higher collective claims by a monthly price cap. Costs are reduced through a daily updated pricing and risk model, with policyholders being transparent about where their money is going each month, the company says.”

    “We are thrilled to bring our modern, refreshing, and collective insurance model to Germany, where micro-mobility is already a part of everyday life and continues to grow,” says Kelly Barnes, CMO of Laka.

  4. UDV research: E-bikes are not more dangerous than regular bicycles for most users

    Comments Off on UDV research: E-bikes are not more dangerous than regular bicycles for most users

    Source: fietsberaad.nl

    Statistics provided by the German Insurers Accident Research (UDV) indicate that an e-bike is no more dangerous than a regular bicycle in most cases, despite differing opinions.

    As e-bike usage in Germany has grown, so has the associated number of accidents. At a glance, it appears the proportion of elderly people involved in e-bike crashes may have increased, but following analysis, this can actually be attributed to a higher proportion of elderly riders using e-bikes. What is striking is that there are relatively more single-vehicle accidents involving e-cyclists and more accidents generally outside of built-up areas.

    Of course, the question is whether e-cyclists run a higher risk per kilometer driven. E-cyclists in Germany drive on average 1.8 times as many kilometers per day than regular cyclists. Once the difference in distance is taken into account, it is revealed that the age group 34-74 is not at a higher risk. This applies to involvement in accidents, the cause of accidents, and the outcome (injury or fatality). However, the risk is higher for those between 18-34 years old and to a lesser extent the over-75s. German researchers hypothesize that young people may take more risks while riding and use the pedal assist to ride faster than regular cyclists.

    Incidentally, Germany also struggles with incomplete accident figures. The police only register injury crashes and hardly any single-vehicle crashes. Therefore, a research gap is present and further analysis must be considered once data is available.

  5. Powers to enact 30km/h low-speed zones demanded by over 260 German cities

    Comments Off on Powers to enact 30km/h low-speed zones demanded by over 260 German cities

    Source: TheMayor.eu, D. Balgaranov

    Municipalities in Germany are unable to issue their own maximum speed laws, impacting the success of liveable city initiatives.

    In 2021, 7 German cities announced a new initiative, advocating for the right of municipalities to set their own speed limits. Since the founding cities of Aachen, Augsburg, Freiburg, Hanover, Leipzig, Münster, and Ulm sparked the conversation, 263 municipalities have declared their support.

    The ‘Liveable cities through appropriate speeds’ initiative focuses on the central right to enact 30km/h low-speed zones. The basis for this rests on the idea that liveability and quality of life are closely associated with public spaces and the interaction between motor and pedestrian traffic in these areas. Low-speed zones have been shown to reduce noise pollution, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide pollution and decrease the risk of fatal injuries in the areas they are enacted.

    The initiative’s four demands, signed off by mayors, city councilors responsible for mobility and urban development, and urban planning departments are:

    • A commitment to a turnaround in mobility (away from personal vehicles and towards other means of transportation) and quality of life measures in cities.
    • A 30km/h speed for motor vehicle traffic, including on main roads, is an integral part of a sustainable, city-wide mobility concept and a strategy for upgrading public spaces.
    • Petition the federal government to immediately create the legal prerequisites for municipalities to be able to order a maximum speed limit of 30 km/h where the municipalities deem necessary.
    • A funding model for research projects to determine the individual aspects, benefits, and effects of this regulation, to improve the application of this principle.

  6. CAKE expands operations in Germany

    Comments Off on CAKE expands operations in Germany

    Local team and Berlin storefront to further propel the Swedish electric motorbike brand in the German capital.

    LEVA-EU member CAKE, the Swedish maker of premium lightweight electric motorcycles, today announced that they are expanding their presence on the German market. A local sales team is already up and running in Berlin and a full-service CAKEsite is expected to open later this year – with a CAKE Pop-Up Store already serving local customers out of Berlin’s central Mitte district.

    “Our physical presence around the world is expanding in line with our multi-city strategy, where we treat key cities as proper markets of their own. Berlin continues to be at the forefront of things to come, with the electrification of vehicle fleets being top of mind with politicians and citizens alike. Change is happening fast, with more companies and commuters realizing every day how CAKE motorbikes can make business better – or just turn commuting into something pleasant”, said Stefan Ytterborn, Founder and CEO of CAKE.

    New fossil fuel vehicles banned by 2030
    Like many major cities in Europe, Berlin is moving ahead quickly to combat the use of combustion engine vehicles in its city center. A petition to effectively ban cars from Berlin’s city center gathered more than 50,000 signatures earlier this year and is currently being reviewed by the state constitutional court. With more than 6 million residents calling the greater Berlin area their “Zuhause”, CAKE sees huge potential in the area. Already marketing the entire family of premium electric motorcycles and mopeds through their online store, many Berliners are already familiar with the CAKE brand. Current clients include last-mile delivery companies as well as commuters conscious of both their time and the environment.

    Berliners are already demanding city streets free of polluting and noisy cars that clog up what little is left of available space. “We have a compelling offering of clean, electric motorbikes that caters both to occasional riders all the way to professional power users. We are definitely looking forward to making a difference in Berlin,” commented Nicole Nehrke, General Sales Manager Berlin, CAKE.

    The CAKE Pop Up Store Berlin is now open and is located on Torstraße 101, 10119 Berlin.

  7. Trade-exclusive e-cargo bike trial underway across south-west Germany

    Comments Off on Trade-exclusive e-cargo bike trial underway across south-west Germany

    Source: SAZ Bike, M. Huber

    Starting June 27, six cities across south-western Germany are set to host commercial e-cargo bike testing opportunities, promoting uptake among local businesses.

    Berlin transport change agency Cargobike.jetzt is behind the operation, offering a variety of LEVs for testing. These include various e-cargo bikes and trailers, supporting up to 200kg of cargo. The scheduled dates and locations are:

    • Monday, June 27: Ludwigsburg | Rathaushof | 1pm-6pm
    • Tuesday, June 28: Stuttgart | Karlsplatz | 11am-4pm
    • Wednesday, June 29: Karlsruhe | Old Slaughterhouse 35 | 12pm-7pm
    • Thursday, June 30: Darmstadt | HWK Frankfurt-Rhine-Main | 11am-4pm
    • Friday, July 1st: Mainz | Mewa Arena | 11am-4pm
    • Saturday, July 2: Wiesbaden | Palace Square | 9am-7pm
    (Source: Cargobike.jetzt / “Flottes Gewerbe”)

  8. The German cargo bike boom: 2021 market report

    Comments Off on The German cargo bike boom: 2021 market report

    Source: cargobike.jetzt

    The nationwide German Bike Monitor 2021 survey, which occurs every two years, has highlighted shifting attitudes towards cargo bikes within the population

    The definition for a cargo bike used in the survey is as follows: “The cargo bike is a bicycle that is used to transport loads or people. Depending on the intended use, the basket/box is in the rider’s field of vision or in the rear area of ​​the bike. Depending on the design, these bikes are equipped with two or three wheels.”

    From this, participants were quizzed on various aspects of the cargo bike market. The representative survey now estimates over eight million potential cargo bike buyers in Germany alone, with double that figure showing interest in cargo bike-sharing services.

    Awareness of cargo models has risen from 38% in 2017 to 63% in 2021, clearly indicating the growing market. Additionally, 2% of the population now use a cargo bike in their lives (1.2 million individuals).

    An interesting question, newly added this year, regarded second-hand bikes. The cargo bike garnered the most interest of all bike models in this case. 35% of those interested in a cargo bike would prefer to buy pre-owned; for comparison, this figure falls to 14% when averaged between all bike types.

    The final and particularly insightful section of the data explores the arguments against interest in cargo bikes; the reasoning for such disinterest was found to cover a range of issues. At 61 percent, having your own car will remain the most important argument against buying a cargo bike in 2021, this was followed by the bikes being ‘too bulky and unwieldy’ (36%), lack of parking/storage space (29%), skepticism about effectiveness (27%), and finally, the high price tag at 24%.

    Read the full German Bicycle Monitor 2021 here.

  9. Road safety police in Berlin now ride cargo bikes

    Comments Off on Road safety police in Berlin now ride cargo bikes

    Source: News.dayFR

    Berlin’s Chief of Police, Dr. Barbara Slowik, unveiled 70 service bicycles and 11 cargo bicycles for road safety advisors at the five local police departments.

    Rather than be transported in a radio truck, ‘Road Safety Tips’ documents are now transported on cargo bikes. The 70 service bikes include a lock, first aid kit, multitool, and waterproof luggage bag. Additionally, all riding officers were provided with new, custom uniforms.

Campaign success

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.

Member profile

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.