Source: Cycling Electric

UK publication Cycling Electric has taken a fresh look at the monetary benefits of regular e-bike use, especially in comparison to running a car for short- to mid-range journeys, and against the backdrop of currently volatile oil prices.

The figures Cycling Electric uses are related mainly to the UK, however the general points can be applied to other countries.

Car ownership vs. e-bike ownership

Simply owning a car has attached costs – insurance, Vehicle Excise Duty or equivalent emissions tax – which are applicable even without driving. This can be assumed at a minimum of £300 (approximately €347) per year, and likely to be over £500 (€579). Then factor in the cost of filling a car’s fuel tank, calculated for a mid-range 65-litre model at either £92.30 (€106.86) for a petrol car or £102.05 (€118.15) for diesel – which would provide a conservatively calculated 615 miles (990 km) of driving.

The cost of buying an electric bike does, of course, vary; however, the Cycling Electric article points to several models that can be purchased for under £1,000 (€1,158). On that basis, the comparison with the cost of running a car is stark: assuming £500 a year for insurance and tax, the article notes that after just five fuel fill-ups and around 3,000 miles of driving, you would already have spent enough to buy one of these e-bikes.

E-bikes do of course require charging, calculated for an average 500Wh battery at around £0.14 (€0.17) per charge, with a variable cost-per-mile depending on the model and riding conditions. Maintenance costs must also be considered, but they are much lower than car maintenance costs – Cycling Electric states that replacing a car’s wing mirror glass is likely to outstrip a full service for an e-bike.

Other benefits of e-bikes

The tendency to choose the car for short-distance journeys may be a symptom of poor cycling infrastructure, though studies have shown that, where a household owns an electric bike, car use drops by around 19%, and that the threshold distance for choosing bike over car rises from 1.5 km to 5 km when an electric bike is the two-wheeled option.

Transportation data and analytics company INRIX last year published the 2025 Global Traffic Scorecard, which calculates the economic cost of congestion in almost 950 cities, across 36 countries. In the UK, the average driver lost 62 hours due to traffic congestion, with an associated cost to the driver of £581 (€673), rising to £942 (€1,091) for London drivers. For the UK overall, the cost to the country was calculated at £7.7 billion (€8.9 billion).

E-bike riders are able to bypass the congestion, thereby saving themselves the inconvenience and costs associated with being stuck in traffic.

There are costs attached to poor health which can be associated with sedentary, non-active transportation. In contrast, cycle commuting (whether with traditional or e-bikes) has positive external results, reducing the incidence of cardiovascular disease, cancer and other mortality causes, and enhancing mental well-being.

Incentives for e-bike ownership

One example of an effective subsidy program encouraging the switch from cars to e-bikes for regular journeys is seen in a study conducted by the University of British Columbia, Canada. Just over 1,000 participants received a rebate towards an e-bike purchase; after both 3 and 12 months of e-bike use, use of the participants’ cars fell by 20% overall, and e-bike use rose by a factor of 16 post ownership. “In short, people began to use the right tool for the job, cycling shorter journeys and increasingly mid-length too, dropping car reliance over time.”