Increased Bicycle Usage a Positive Consequence of the Coronavirus Pandemic

September 23, 2020 -There has been a significant increase in bicycle and e-bike sales in 2020. In March, for instance, e-bike sales in the US increased 85% compared to the same month in 2019. This spike is largely the result of people looking for alternative forms of commuting (especially since crowded public buses and trains are not as appealing today as they once were). This has a number of obvious health benefits for the rider, but it also helps cities reduce their carbon emissions and many of these cities are taking full advantage of this trend:

• In the US, New York City legalized e-bikes and scooters in April and Denver, Minneapolis, Oakland, and Seattle, among others, are reallocating certain roadways for pedestrians and cyclists.
• In Paris, 650 kilometers of temporary “cycleways” have been created, with the goal of making at least some of these cycleways permanent.
• Milan is planning to transform 35 kilometers of streets for dedicated cycling and pedestrian lanes.
• Brussels is creating 40 kilometers of bike lanes in and around the city center.

While many of these transformations were originally planned to be temporary, the hope is that much of this redesigned infrastructure will become permanent. Given the spike in e-bike sales this year in both the US and Europe, it looks increasingly like these changes will remain.

For more information and discussion of opportunities, see The Freedonia Group’s extensive collection of off-the-shelf research, particularly Global E-Bikes. Freedonia also offers an expanding catalog of COVID-19 Economic Impact reports, which highlight how various industries are responding to the current crisis with a comparison to recent recessions. Freedonia Custom Research is also available for questions requiring tailored market intelligence.