I’m sure that if you see the fine print, this means that pedal-assist ebikes that have 250W motor and are limited to 25kph (15mph) are considered bicycles. Something like a Surron is still considered a motorbike and needs to be registerated, insured, needs a licence and is only allowed to be driven on the roads among cars - as they should.
Sounds exactly how it was regulated in Germany, except for the license I think. It’s pretty much handled the same as a moped, which I think is totally fair.
Don’t you need a licence for moped in Germany? In Finland you need one unless you’re born before 1980 I think. Same with motorcycles.
According to the article, those limits are regulated on EU level. Which also makes perfect sense, since that allows for a single market of e-bikes.
That’s not a fine print, that’s a definition for ebikes. Surron is 100% a motorbike. They don’t even look like bicycles and never targeted the bicycle market.
It’s a spectrum and the limits are quite arbitrary. Plenty of people would agree that Surron is a motorbike, but some of those same people want to be able to drive without pedaling, have more powerful motor than 250W, go faster than 25kph or all of the above.