More and more serious accidents with e-bikes
Goslar- More and more e-bikers are involved in serious accidents. In the first nine months of 2017, almost 4,300 accidents involving personal injuries were recorded, often involving electric bicycles, the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) said. According to Destatis, these are 28 percent more accidents than in the same period last year. According to the Bicycle Club ADFC, there are now about 3.5 million pedelecs in Germany. Alone in 2017, just under 700 000 were added, an increase of around 25 percent.
Basically, the increase in the number of accidents due to the rising number of e-bikes to explain said ADFC spokeswoman Stephanie crown. In Goslar- In the past, the Congress of Experts had repeatedly dealt with pedelecs and ways to protect drivers. From the 24th to the 26th of January, the 56th VGT will deal, among other things, with the topics of "driver evasion", "higher fines for traffic offenders" and "cannabis in traffic". According to the Federal Statistical Office, 55 pedelec drivers were killed between 2017 and September. The number of deaths for the entire year is therefore expected to be about twice as high in 2014, the first year in which the Federal Office recorded pedelec accidents. At that time there were 39 deaths. The number of electric bikes will continue to b est bike us increase and thus also the number of disproportionately involved in accidents seniors, said accident researcher Brockmann. "Many older people drive much faster through the support of the electric motor than their capabilities actually allow," said the accident researchers. This often leads to loss of control and falls.
ADFC spokeswoman Krone advises elders not to sit on a pedelec without preparation. "Anyone who has not ridden a bicycle for many years should familiarize themselves with the drive and braking characteristics before the first exit." Every third accident with a pedelec is the result of unadjusted speed, said Brockmann. An e-biker died shortly before Christmas in Bremen when he collided head-on with a bicycle at an excessive speed.
Brockmann advocates a technical solution: the support provided by the electric motor should be linked to the power that the drivers themselves spend. "If you pedal slowly, you will not get much
engine power or you will be slowed down in speed," said Brockmann. "This will mean that seniors will not be able to drive faster than cyclists with their e-bikes." From the point of view of the accident researcher, it becomes particularly dangerous when e-bikes are tuned. "This is more and more around," said Brockmann. So the police pursued recently in Soest (North Rhine-Westphalia) a cyclist who accelerated his tuned mountain bike up to 60 km / h. In Erfurt (Thuringia) an e-bike driver fled at high speed in front of a police check. He too had tuned his pedelec. From the e-bike, tuning advised the accident researchers as well as the ADFC. Otherwise, the danger would be incalculable, especially for older people, said Brockmann. And the upgrade is mostly illegal. (AP)