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The upsurge in the popularity of e-bikes across Australia* is not without reason. Commuters are increasingly recognising the benefits of e-travel; which far outweigh that of traditional transport; just as councils are stepping up their efforts to accommodate the growing community of bikers.
We’ve already documented how e-bikes are particularly ideal for commuters in Sydney and Melbourne, but with its equally-bikeable streets and expanding green network, Brisbane proves just as suitable for e-travel as its interstate neighbours.
With e-bikes, Brisbane commutes are shorter, cheaper and cleaner. Add-in the city’s bike-friendly layout and you’ve got all the makings of an expertly-streamlined itinerary. Still not convinced? Here are four reasons why Brisbanites will make the switch to e-bikes today:
We’ll forgive you for thinking that cars make for a quicker commute than e-bikes. When only accounting for the time spent driving, it’s a fair assumption to make. However, what these estimates don’t consider is the complete door-to-door trip in its entirety, which also includes time spent parking and walking to your destination.
In peak hour traffic, car trips rarely take as quickly as promised, and the lack of parking in Brisbane’s CBD makes finding a nearby spot something of a miracle. These minutes, plus those spent at notoriously confusing parking meters, gradually accumulate until a door-to-door trip feels more like an exhausting expedition.
Meanwhile on public transport, commuters must account for potential delays and wait times, as well as the continual stop-and-starts that come with a busy train or bus. Soon, what was once thought to be a brief commute has since swallowed a decent chunk of your morning and afternoon routine, but that’s not the case with e-bikes.
Biking eliminates much of this wasted time. Door-to-door, Zoomo bikes offer a much quicker alternative to cars and public transport, allowing you to forgot incidental delays with traffic-doging routes through parks and alleyways, as well as countless parking options often right at the destination’s front door. From A to B, e-bike travel is largely free of pesky commuting time-wasters; a fact best shown along two of Brisbane’s key routes:
On this 5.6km journey between Brisbane CBD and Toowong, bikes provide the most reliable mode of transportation. The trip can take up to 40 minutes in peak hour, with heavy traffic often doubling or even tripling the commute time. On public transport, the relatively short distance can still take anywhere between 30 - 40 minutes. Meanwhile, e-bike travel along the same route can more than halve the commute time, taking less than 19 minutes to travel from Toowong to Brisbane CBD and vice versa.
Road Between The Gabba and Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital**
While limits permit 60km/hr along the stretch of road between The Gabba and Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital, average speeds are far slower, especially during peak hour periods. At 8am, motorists hit just 21km/hr, a snail's-pace that continues again from 3pm - 6pm. With Zoomo’s e-bikes reaching a top speed of 25km/hr, commuters can swap-out the glacial traffic jams and travel even faster than a car would along this same route.
Below we have created a list of the time taken to get into Brisbane’s CBD during peak hour from some areas around Brisbane.
Toowong: 35 minutes by car, 34 minutes on a bus, only 19 minutes on an E-bike.
Ascot: 40 minutes by car, 40 minutes on a bus, only 24 minutes on an E-bike.
Coorparoo: 35 minutes by car, 23 minutes on a bus, only 23 minutes on an E-bike.
While a quicker door-to-door trip is undoubtedly appealing, e-bike travel also makes for a more enjoyable travelling experience. With Australians spending an average of 6 hours commuting every week***, why not maximise this time with an active and fresh-air journey?
E-bike riders can ditch the fidgety agitation of traffic jams, and escape the noise of an overheated bus or train, all while taking in Brisbane’s city sights en route. Health benefits are not just limited to the alleviated stress of skipping peak hour, as e-bikes have also been proven to boost both physical and mental health.
More broadly, e-bikes contribute to the city’s overall health by producing less than 1/10th of the nasty CO2 emissions generated by petrol-fuelled cars. By riding with Zoomo, Brisbanites can help fellow citizens enjoy a less polluted cityscape, and collectively bask in the city’s fresher air.
So you’ve weighed the pros of a speedier, breezier commute, but is Brisbane itself even bike-friendly? Thankfully, for those teetering on the e-bike edge, the answer is a resounding yes. The River City is filled with cycling routes, and is increasingly expanding its already well-developed off-road bikeways. The riverbed in particular is a cyclist’s dream, with readily-bikeable commutes already available to the North and South of the CBD.
More recently, Brisbane council greenlit plans for two more bikeway bridges connecting both Toowong and St Lucia to the West End, a development that will cut travel times by more than two thirds for e-bike riders. This, on top of the installation of an extra 1700 kilometres of bike ways by 2031, makes Brisbane one of the country’s most bike-friendly cities, bolstered by the council’s $100 million investment in cycling routes from 2016- 2020. E-bike riders in Brisbane enjoy unprecedented access to both local destinations and the CBD, further streamlining their commute throughout the city.
Brisbane’s bike-friendliness also extends to its readily-available amenities. Chiefly, the council has installed more than 200 free public bike racks, allowing cyclists nearby access to their destinations across the city. This availability is set to increase further, with the thousands of additional bike parking spaces also approved as part of new council developments.
Elsewhere, Brisbane enjoys a surplus of end of trip facilities, which have been made compulsory for much of the city’s office buildings and hospitals since 2010. Bikers worried about dishevelling their office attire can freshen-up with end-of-trip lockers, showers and change rooms, with additional facilities available through subscription to CityCycle. These services further ease the transition from car to e-bike, with Zoomo’s electrical-assistance ensuring that travelers don’t break too much of a sweat.
There’s no denying that cars can be a money pit. Servicing, registrations and the ongoing expense of petrol equates to two-car Australian households spending an average of $16, 912 to cover the running costs of their vehicles every year. While undoubtedly cheaper, Brisbane’s public transport prices have been gradually rising, with bus and train riders paying a 1.5% increase in fares.
Unsurprisingly, Zoomo e-bikes eliminate much of these expenses, offering fuel-free travel as well as low ongoing maintenance costs. While the upfront price of an e-bike can be high, Zoomo specifically offers weekly and affordable rental subscriptions, as well as credit purchase schemes, making it a cheaper option than public transport travel cards.
Quicker, healthier and cheaper, Zoomo e-bikes are an ideal travel mode for Brisbane residents, further streamlined by the city’s easily-bikeable urban planning. Brisbanites, ditch the costly cars, dodge the traffic jams and escape the overcrowded buses with a clean, green, money-saving machine; your wallet, health and city will thank you for it.
Don’t take it from us Brisbane, feel free to book a test ride and fall in love with an e-bike all by yourself!
View our full range of commuter bikes here.
*** https://www.rmit.edu.au/news/all-news/2019/jul/increasing-commuting-times
References
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