Want to cut carbon emissions and change your lifestyle for the better?

Feb. 28, 2012 - PRLog -- Bright spark: why electric bikes look set to be huge in 2012
Want to cut carbon emissions and change your lifestyle for the better? Then it might be time to start thinking about investing in an aXcess electric bike.

Thanks to concerns about climate change and global warming, cycling is rapidly becoming one of the most popular forms of transport in the UK.  According to the Department for Transport, one in six of us regularly hops on a bike, with 79 per cent of cyclists using two wheels at least once per week. 30 per cent of Britain’s cyclists use their bike for their daily commute, while a whopping 38 per cent use their bicycles to boost their social life. Either way, the average pedal power cyclist clocks up 15 miles a week on their bike. But while pedal power is, for most of us, an exercise for the leg muscles, there’s a newcomer on the scene that looks set to change the way we cycle.
The aXcess electric bike. And statistics show that  the 15 miles a week clocked up easily becomes 100 plus miles a week with an electric bike.

Commuters take note.

It might sound like a bit of a cheat but the electric bike is becoming popular on the continent, with a quarter of all bikes sold in the cycling-mad Netherlands benefiting from an electric boost.  ‘If there’s a steep hill between you and your place or work and if you often need to cycle to work in smart clothes and don’t want to get too dishevelled  or  even if you want to get out and about and enjoy the scenery the UK has to offer without the effort, the extra boost of an electric bike could remove that last barrier to getting you cycling,’ comments the Campaign for Better Transport’s Sian Berry. The environmental credentials of the aXcess bikes are impressive too, particularly when compared to cars and motorbikes.  After factoring in CO2 emissions produced during electricity generation, the total comes to 2.6 grams of CO2 per mile compared to 150 grams for most electric cars, and 136 grams for scooters.

Besides carbon emissions, there are some good reasons why the electric bike looks set to spark a revolution in the way we cycle.  According to electric bike specialist, aXcess, hopping on an electric bike can save you serious cash. ‘Wherever you live, an electric bike can save you money on motoring as well as improving your health and fitness,’ says owner Tim Blackman.  ‘You don’t need road tax, an MOT or road insurance and at about 12p to recharge the battery to take you 25 miles, an electric bike is a cost effective form of transport.’ What’s more, adds Tim, the extra power produced by the bike’s engine opens up cycling to everyone – young, middling and older – at whatever fitness level.  ‘Electric bikes recapture the cycling freedom and ability experienced when younger, as well as improving health and well-being, providing a small lifestyle change that many of us need,’ he says. ‘Electric bikes enable people with differing fitness levels to cycle easily together, to rediscover beautiful places away from the busy traffic.’

So are there any downsides to swapping your conventional cycle for an electric model? First, you will expend more carbon emissions than you would on a regular bike, although it’s still considerably less than in an electric car or scooter. Second, if you’re planning on using the bike purely as a way to get fit, you will burn slightly more on a conventional cycle (around 502 calories per hour), than you will on an electric bike, which uses only 450 - so not a huge difference -  depending on how fast you go.  Through being able to travel further on an aXcess electric bike, far more calories can be burned - result.  Price too is a factor, although Blackman has a solution for that. ‘The affordability of aXcess electric bikes gives you the freedom to improve leisure time, drive less, get to work more easily and improve your health and lifestyle,’ he says. And with prices for an aXcess electric bikes coming in at less that £1000, getting to grips with electric bikes might not be as hard as you think.

Find out more:
aXcess bikes come with the latest 250 watt, 36 volt brushless motors for power and efficiency, and 36 Volt 10 Amp Lithium batteries for reliability and range. Choose from the Mustang Roadster, the Mustang Mountain, the Hunter Step Through, the Exmoor 24 and the Shetland Folder. Prices start at £845 and all bikes come with 12 months warranty on the frame, battery and electrical components. The new range of aXcess electric bikes can be seen at the South coast’s Lifestyle Exhibition at the Brighton Centre on Saturday & Sunday 10/11 March 2012. Camping World in Horsham is the first stockist to hold an open weekend on 24/25 March 2012. It follows the brighton show, where visitors can find out more.   All stockists and further information, visit
www.axcess-electric-bikes.co.uk