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Great comments on ebikes. Let me give you a perspective from the Netherlands. In 2018 of all new bicycles sold, 40 % were ebikes. This is in a country with very few hills. Ebikes are now big business in Holland. One of the policies that helped move this along were tax credits for both riders and companies who encourage cycling. Many of my cousins are now over the age of 60. My family comes from a largely rural area in the east part of the country. I have asked them why an ebike? The overwhelming response is that they have the ability to travel much longer distances. Instead of doing a 20 km trip they can easily do a 100 km trip. In some cases because of health issues many of the older cousins have not been on a bike for many years. The comment from these folks was ebikes have given them freedom to again do something that they love. Ebikes are a natural for a hilly city like Calgary. I expect to see huge growth in ebike use in Calgary as prices come down and choice increases.
FYI, I have just sent an email to my conservative MP, Pat Kelley. They have announced a revival of the public transit tax credit in their platform. My question is why not for bicycles? I will post again if I get a reply.
There are many more important cycling issues than the Idaho stop. In my neighborhood we have a 4-way stop intersection. Last weekend over a 1 hour time period I observed that 75 % of the cars treated the intersection as an Idaho stop. I wonder if bike cops come to a complete stop if there is no traffic? In my opinion much ado about nothing.
