E-bike turnover overtakes pedal cycle sales in the Netherlands

The popularity of the electric bike has seen turnover surpass sales of pedal cycles for the first time in the Netherlands.

According to Dutch trade org RAI and Bovag, some 57% of sales, worth €514 million registered through the tills as electric bike sales in 2015. This is further evidenced by a new edition of Mobility in Figures 2016-2017. Following a decline to just €750 million in turnover in 2012, total revenue across all bikes totaled €899 million.

In what will be music to the bicycle dealer’s ears, not only has the Netherlands broken a turnover record, but the average sale price of a new bike rose to €1,058 in 2015, largely down to high-ticket e-bike purchases. Numbers were further topped up by over 8,000 speed pedelecs registered, a 30% year-on-year increase for this niche category. Riders of these bikes are warned that they fall into the same regulatory category as mopeds.

Back in July, industry giant the Accell Group placed electric bike sales at 43% of its turnover across all brands.

Coming on the same day that Bosch’s CEO Volkmar Denner has said that “the car as we know it will soon be history”, the rise in popularity of the electric bike has quickly apeared on the radar of transport planners, with pedal-assisted share schemes popping up around the globe with increasing regularity.

Denner outlined his vision for multi-modal transport: “Our mobility solutions go beyond automotive technology. A seamlessly connected mobility assistant has even more potential: as part of the moveBW project, Bosch will create a mobility assistant that makes it possible for drivers in the Greater Stuttgart area to plan their route using different modes of transport, including switching to bikes, trains, and buses. What makes this project special is that a single app is enough to plan, book, and pay for travel involving different means of transport.”