Electric utility bikes

ARMY HITS THE GAS ON ELECTRIC UTILITY BIKES

By Dave Williams

The first signs are positive. Electric bikes have hit the hills around Waiouru for the start of a 12-month trial of their suitability for military use.

The 2x2 utility bikes are made by Tauranga company UBCO, which has supplied four of them in camouflage paint scheme, extra battery packs and a range of spare parts.

“They’re better than walking,” says Corporal Scotty Francis, 10 th Transport Company 103 PL, 2 nd Combat Service Support Battalion, who was quietly impressed with their performance.

“These bikes are user friendly, fun to ride.

“The performance was a lot better than I expected for an electric bike. If you look for ways to utilise it in your operations as another form of mobility then you will be quite happy with the capability this bike offers.”

The 65kg bikes are much lighter than normal military motorcycles, have an electric motor in each wheel, and with regenerative braking can travel up to 120km on a single charge. The Army, Navy and Air Force will each trial the bikes, which in the general market are aimed at farmers, hunters, emergency services and others.

“They won’t replace motorcycles, but could fill the gap between a soldier walking somewhere and where they might use a motorcycle or quad bike to help carry equipment,” says Lieutenant Colonel Brad Gallop.

“Obviously they are more environmentally friendly, and we will see if they are also more military friendly.

“Electric vehicles offer some advantages over normally fuelled vehicles. They are quiet, don’t give off engine or exhaust heat and aren’t powered by highly flammable liquids.

“They are simple to maintain and onboard computers will be able to record a range of information about how the bike is used. “They will be limited to 50kmh and have lower training requirements to that of a motorcycle.”

Dylan Hughes, UBCO Director Sales & Marketing, Asia Pacific, says electric vehicles have so many advantages that could be ideal in military applications.

“For example, the near silence of the electric motors. The strength to weight ratio – the whole bike weighs just 65kg, so it can be lifted and handled no sweat.

“No clutch means you get bullet proof low-speed control and with a 1kW motor in each wheel, the 2X2 has excellent handling, across a range of terrains.

“We’re excited to see how the military embrace the utility of the bike – we’ve designed it to carry anything from a holster to a trailer to storage bags – you can attach all sorts of equipment to it.”

The trial is part of the Defence Force’s wider goal of becoming a more sustainable organisation, which also fits with the Government’s goal of having 64,000 EVs on New Zealand roads by the end of next year.

The sustainable framework of Tuku Iho (“to pass on what you’ve received in at least as good as, if not better than, what you receive it in”) aims to enhance and protect the Defence estate’s natural, financial, manufactured, intellectual, social and human capital.