How Does Electric Cycle Lifestyle Feel Like?

Category : Tech
electric cycle
By RAMA RAU

Hi there! I am Ali! I reside in the Jubilee Hill area of Hyderabad City.  It was a glorious morning when I made an enthusiastic decision to go for a ride on my trusted electric cycle! As I rode through the busy streets of Jubilee Hills. I began recollecting the pressing question that most people in India fire at me: Why do you ride a cycle with a peddle assist? What are the maintenance costs involved?

Well, the answer was quite simple! Being a long-term electric bicycle rider and commuter. I hope to ride around in my bicycle throughout my golden years. However, due to a sudden diabetic attack three years ago. I became extremely fatigued and couldn’t continue my favorite form of exercise. Furthermore, I was finding it extremely difficult to resume even the relatively short bicycle rides to work.

Introduction To Electric Cycle Lifestyle

Initially, I made a firm decision to quite cycling and start using an automobile. However, one of my closest friends recommended that I considered the latest piece of cycling technology. Buy an electric cycle online or add an assist system to my bicycle. They said that it was cost-effective to either choose one of the two options.

I decided to go with the first and purchase an electric cycle online. And trust me…it was the best decision of my life!

Cost Breakdown

The price of a high-end electric cycle like the Motovolt Kivo is between Rs.3000-Rs.50000 rupees in India.  It weighs nearly 24kg and has a spectacular range of 25-70 Km with a battery that should last about 500 charge cycles or about 16000 kilometres. I performed some calculations and an amazing realisation hit me that even a high-end electric cycle. If utilised instead of driving a car or riding a motorcycle, would save me a substantial amount of fuel!

The car I own gets about 40 km/l on the main routes I use. With the price of petrol around Rs.79/litre at the time, using an electric cycle instead of the car would save approximately 18 lakhs in petrol over the lifetime of the battery.  So even if the electric cycle only lasted 16000 kilometres it would pay for itself just in fuel savings.

With regards to the operating costs of these e-cycles, the question people ask me is: what is the cost of charging the battery. The cost of recharging the electric bicycle (assuming a 90% charging efficiency and 0.56/kwh of electricity, costs about 0.24 rupees per complete charge and would be around Rs.2500 over the 10000-mile battery life. Which in turn, is too trivial when compared to other costs like battery replacement.

Finally, I convinced myself that buying an electric cycle would be extremely economical for me. Moreover, my family doctor was in favour of it as he felt I needed to get as much exercise as possible. And cycling was about the only form of exercise I was getting even though it was tiring me.

I bought the Kivo online from the company’s official website and couldn’t be happier! Not only was I able to return to cycle commuting. I was also carrying out recreational rides again. The electric cycle was simply fantastic to ride and I ended up getting more exercise than I did prior to getting disabled. Since then, my condition has improved gradually to the point that I can commute frequently on a regular bicycle. But I still use it because it has dramatically increased the utility of bicycling for me.

The Benefits Of Leading The Electric Cycle Lifestyle

One of the most crucial factors is sweating. I live in a city where the climate is mostly hot and humid. A city where for about 6-7 months, bicycling with my effort will leave me dripping with sweat. Recreational rides aren’t a huge problem however, it does play a major role while commuting and for transportation. For instance, I need to visit a doctor who lives about 10 miles away from my place.

Prior to using an electric cycle for the commute, I’d mostly drive so that I don’t arrive on the for an examination sweating horribly. Or suppose I am leaving office for an urgent meeting at a site that is nearly 7 miles away. So, if I needed to use my normal bicycle, I’d have to change into my bicycle clothes, cycle to the other side, take a shower most likely and change back into my business wear.

Although cycling takes mostly 40 minutes, showering and changing add another 40 minutes, making it a prolonged process. Especially when I return to the office, where I’d have to repeat the time-consuming process. So, I’d have to ensure that I have my car on those days.

However, with an electric bicycle, I can move around without being anxious about sweating. And now, I simply cycle in my formal and it takes no longer than driving. Another profound advantage is the enhanced speed and reduced effort. Previously, I’d use the bicycle only for errands that were less than 5 miles. As it would take a lot more time and effort compared to driving for longer journeys.

Frankly speaking, a 10-20 miles round trip on a bicycle was fun-filled. However, I’d be extremely exhausted if I had to do more than one of those trips in a day. But now, with the electric cycle, a massive boost in speed is available. My average speed has elevated from 10-12kmph to 19-20kmph! Furthermore, there has been a huge reduction in my effort. So even if I do 30 miles for errands in a day, I feel no sign of tiredness. Additionally, I can still perform other household chores when I get done with the previous ones.

In addition to that, I face no issues hauling heavy loads anymore. So, if I grab 50kg of groceries from a distant store, I face no worries cycling up a large hill road with the load.

In short, I am able to lead my dream bicycle lifestyle as I ride around in street wear and that too, in the scorching heat and merciless humidity of the extreme climate of Hyderabad city.

What Are The Downsides To The E-Cycle Lifestyle?

Previously, whenever there would be any mechanical problems with the bicycle, all I needed was to take it to a cycle shop and get it fixed at a reasonable price. However, if the electrical system of an e-cycle fails, then I run out of luck. And that’s simply because there are currently very few local dealers who can repair the electric bicycle. In addition to that, getting an electric bicycle repaired is hefty on the pocket.

Apart from the cost of repair, the battery takes between 4-5 hours to charge fully, which is too long while running errands while going for an abrupt recreational ride.

Another disadvantage is the horrible attitude of the cyclists. When I take my electric bicycle for a ride, numerous cyclists struggle to catch up with me and when they do manage to reach. They throw a disgusting look at me and call me a cheater indirectly. Now, since my intention wasn’t to race with the guy, that kind of attitude irritates me.

I have never dwelled in the realm of cycling to compete with anyone. Rather taken it up as a fun adventure way to commute. However, this type of attitude from other cyclists forces me to keep away from recreational trails to avoid that annoying attitude. I sincerely hope that this kind of attitude will change when electric bicycles transfigure into a bigger part of our community.

Overall, the e-cycle experience has been quite positive, allowing me to utilize the art of cycling on a regular basis. Plus, the wider range that I can cover on my electric cycle means that I am basically fuel-free!

Personally, the Motovolt Kivo is one of the best electric cycles you can buy online. This spectacular electric cycle is equipped with a robust steel frame and a 2.7kg battery making it extremely lightweight! The Kivo has an impressive travel range of 25-70km on a full charge! It accelerates from 0-25kmph in less than 9 seconds and arrives with a flip-type adjustable seat to offer you a ride of comfort and utmost luxury.

Kivo’s amazing Lithium-ion battery retains a lower amount of heat. When compared to other types of batteries used in electric cycles. One of the biggest advantages of the Motovolt Kivo is that its battery is removable and the total weight of the electric cycle is barely 23kg!

Furthermore, this stupendous electric vehicle does not require you to empty your pockets. The price of this electric cycle lies between Rs.29000 to Rs. 42000 in India.

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