I’ve returned to Kunming, China with my family and a handful of students to study transportation demand and transport’s effect on the environment for about two months. It is so interesting coming back every year or so, to see snapshots of the rapid rate of change. There are a number of major infrastructure initiatives in Kunming, including elevating the entire second ring road, causing tons (literally) of trucks to be diverted to the street outside our apartment, which has effectively destroyed the road (and air quality and safety)--one neighborhood fatality and counting. I am particularly interested in the growth in e-bike use in China. Kunming has an estimated 700,000 e-bikes (registered), up from about 180,000 in 2006. Based on my observations, traditional bicycles are nearly extinct--at least endangerd (though that might have happened without the help of e-bikes). Buses are jam-packed and whatever bicycles you see parked at apartment parking lots seem to be collecting dust. This probably has a lot to do with the eroding bicycle infrastructure and longer commutes, as the urbanized area expands. If you have to share the bike lane with encroaching cars and trucks, or because of parked cars in the bike lane, you have to enter the car lane, it seems safer
to do that on an e-bike, that can mix better with car speeds, compared to a bicycle. At any rate, e-bikes seem to follow the trend of replacing some combination of bus and bike trips. Even so, e-bikes are much more maneuverable and, given appropriate infrastructure, are much faster than driving during peak hours. Of course, these observations are in the context of the suburban lifestyle that we are living, so nearer the city center, the more bicycles one might see. Consequently, we’ve bought our family vehicle. An e-scooter we call “silverfish”.
I’ve returned to Kunming, China with my family and a handful of students to study transportation demand and transport’s effect on the environment for about two months. It is so interesting coming back every year or so, to see snapshots of the rapid rate of change. There are a number of major infrastructure initiatives in Kunming, including elevating the entire second ring road, causing tons (literally) of trucks to be diverted to the street outside our apartment, which has effectively destroyed the road (and air quality and safety)--one neighborhood fatality and counting. I am particularly interested in the growth in e-bike use in China. Kunming has an estimated 700,000 e-bikes (registered), up from about 180,000 in 2006. Based on my observations, traditional bicycles are nearly extinct--at least endangerd (though that might have happened without the help of e-bikes). Buses are jam-packed and whatever bicycles you see parked at apartment parking lots seem to be collecting dust. This probably has a lot to do with the eroding bicycle infrastructure and longer commutes, as the urbanized area expands. If you have to share the bike lane with encroaching cars and trucks, or because of parked cars in the bike lane, you have to enter the car lane, it seems safer 
to do that on an e-bike, that can mix better with car speeds, compared to a bicycle. At any rate, e-bikes seem to follow the trend of replacing some combination of bus and bike trips. Even so, e-bikes are much more maneuverable and, given appropriate infrastructure, are much faster than driving during peak hours. Of course, these observations are in the context of the suburban lifestyle that we are living, so nearer the city center, the more bicycles one might see. Consequently, we’ve bought our family vehicle. An e-scooter we call “silverfish”.
1 comment:
hey E-bike guy, I just dig out your blog with a proxy, since you know, we in China can not have free right to visit all the webs. I found your name in a Chinese article, then found your research about the E-bike fate in Kunming. I am a Kunming guy, and is doing a research about the traffic, transport and free bus fare for eld people in Kunming. I am sorry that you and your students did not have a good experience in Kunming at the beginning (I read it from China taking its toll), and I guarantee that Kunming is the most peaceful and nice city in China. I am reading your research E-Bike Use in China, and I am very glad that someone is doing the work even if it is not a Chinese or Kunming guy. When you come back Kunming, you can contact me via jialiugg@gmail.com.
I am wondering if you have heard about free bus fare for eld people, which we called "warm heart card", and would I have honour to have your opinion about it?
thanks
LJ
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