Joshua Carp lives in Charlottesville – in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains – and this hilly terrain is a challenge for those who ride bikes.
“Especially in a town like this, riding a regular bike is not for the faint of heart,” he says. But his neighbor suggested another option – insisting that riding an electric bike would change his life.
“I don’t really believe any of that, but I thought I’d humor him," Carp recalls. "I went over and tried the bike, and I thought— actually— this might change my life a little bit.”
In fact, he now owns ten e-bikes and is lending them to people who want to test drive before they buy.
“An e-bike is a lot cheaper than a car, but it costs more than a regular bike, and I’m not going to spend $1,000-$2,000 online and hope for the best. I had to try it first.”
Some of his e-bikes were donated by companies hoping to sell more of their two-wheelers, but Carp warned them they would get no favoritism from him. He keeps them in a shed behind his house. Inside, he introduces us to a cargo bike.
“It’s got a child seat on the back, so this is a chunkier frame, a heavier bike, but it’s rated to carry 150 pounds of weight on the back. There are wraparound bars for a child to hang onto, and a foam seat to sit on, and I can take off the seat, put on milk crates and bags and go shopping.”
Carp is a software engineer who works from home, and he welcomes a chance to step away from his office when people exploring the e-bike option stop by. He doesn’t charge for this service.
“Donations are welcome," he explains, "but they are optional, and we get enough people to donate to cover our maintenance costs and to keep the project going.”
He figures there is a benefit for him and his family.
“The more people who are out riding bikes, the safer I and my kids are going to feel driving around town, and we get better bike lanes, better bike parking.”
People borrow bikes for up to a week. They’re equipped with a screen that shows how much battery life is left, there are turn signals, brake lights, a rearview mirror and a button that controls how much power the cycle will add to your own efforts.
“I’ll push it down slowly and the rear wheel will turn slowly," he says, as the relatively quiet hardware hums. "I’ll push it down all the way, and it’s going to go pretty fast. If you’re coming up a bigger hill or late for a meeting or it’s July, you pick a higher power level, and you’re still putting in some work, but the bike is doing more work than you’re doing, and you can get to work a little faster and less sweaty at the end of it.”
He tells people about programs that offer cash to city residents and UVA employees who buy e-bikes, and he’s made friends with other e-bike enthusiasts like Guinevere Higgins. She prefers riding to driving her electric car.
“You can cruise past the traffic. You don’t have to circle around looking for parking. It’s just honestly more convenient – paying less for gas and knowing I’m not polluting.”
She and Carp do consider safety, but they conclude that by thinking about what route to take and riding defensively, they and their kids are not at great risk. It’s important, they say, to wear bright colors, to equip your bike with lights and on some streets without bike lanes to ride down the middle.
“Drivers can’t pass you, and they are forced to slow down to accommodate you," she explains. "It might not make them very happy, but it is a much safer way to bike.”
Fortunately, e-bikes can go up to 28 miles an hour – fast enough to keep up with most downtown traffic, and they do 15-22 miles on a single charge -- even more if you’re willing to pedal. Lastly, enthusiasts say, you don’t need a license to ride – and it’s fun.
For more information go to https://www.ebikelibrarycville.org/
