The Oil Drum

Good for you. There are also rechargeable electric motor assist units that can be added on to bicycles and adult tricylces. These will be essential for making bicycles and adult trikes mainstream for older and less physically fit people, and especially for those of us living in topographically challenged (i.e., not flat) terrain.

The big problem is that we still haven't really worked out how to allow motor vehicles and various 2-wheeled and 3-wheeled modes of transport co-exist safely on most town and city streets. Bike lanes are nice where you have them, most places don't, and even those that do are not 100% safe from the 1-ton plus hunks of metal speeding by just inches away. MAny places do not even have sidewalks, meaning that pedestrians must take their chances along the edge of the street with motor vehicles, and occasionally getting killed in the attempt.

Until we have made widespread, almost universal investments in urban infrastructure to make pedestrian and cyclist safety a priority over motor cars, and until the volume of automobile traffic has been reduced and slowed down due to hyper-expensive gasoline, I thus believe that many people are going to find that NEVs will be the most viable transitional option for local travel, especially if they only have short commutes to work or to a mass transit node.

What if people can afford only one car and occasionally need to drive somewhere beyond the range of their NEV, somewhere that mass transit does not yet service? A network of car rental companies already exists, and could be extended into smaller towns and neighborhoods if the demand warrants. If someone can make an NEV serve for their daily needs, then they should find that renting an conventional automobile for their occasional longer trips is an economical option.