As e-bikes gain more market share among bicycle riders, people have become interested in comparing the health benefits of e-bikes to conventional bikes. A recent story in the The Washington Post, entitled “E-bikes get up to speed in popularity, providing a workout easier on the heart,” referenced a 2016 review in conducted by Professor Chris Cherry for Transport Reviews that found that e-bike users got enough exercise to reduce their risk of sedentary lifestyle diseases.
Cherry said that e-bikes offer moderate physical activity without causing users to peak into vigorous physical activity. Over-exertion is one reason that people don’t stick to physical activity prescriptions like riding a bike. E-bikes can still provide needed moderate activity and reduce the over-exertion barrier.
Cherry also noted that e-bikes offer benefits to the environment by being the most energy efficient and the lowest-polluting mode of motorized transportation, which comes from research he conducted in 2017 for the Transportation Research and Education Center.