May is National Bicycle Month in the United States. With more cities focusing on the convenience of walking/biking, and the prospect of climate change becoming a growing concern, the broader conversation about switching to smaller vehicles can't come fast enough.

But for those who have never considered switching to electric cycling before, it may be time to take a second look. That's because with the invention and subsequent popularity of electric bikes, it's easier than ever to switch from expensive and polluting cars to cheap and efficient two-wheeled alternatives. In fact, I use my e-bike almost everywhere, and I hardly ever touch a pedal bike anymore. That's why.

Quick disclaimer about pedaling

Pedal bikes, or the "acoustic bikes" that we often joke about in the e-bike world, are incredible. I think they're one of the most important transportation inventions of all time, maybe second only to the wheel itself.

If you're here to speak out against the bike, you've come to the wrong place. This is not an attack on pedal bikes, I think anyone who can ride one should ride one. They are fun, enjoyable, healthy and easy to access. If 10 percent of today's commuters switched to biking, our world would be a much better place.

But here's the thing. Not everyone can or even wants to ride a pedal bike. In fact, I've found that I get all of these same benefits from my e-bike, and more.

The big drawback of pedal bikes, and this is almost the main reason I don't ride them, is that they require only so much physical exertion that I can use them for anything other than fitness purposes.

For example, let's talk about utility riding, where speed and convenience are often the name of the game.

ride1up Roadster v2 gravel version

Many electric bikes, such as this affordable Roadster V2 Gravel Edition, are so secluded that they are comparable to non-electric bikes.

Speed and convenience

For me, the most common use of cycling is transportation. I'm at point A, and I need to get to point B ASAP. The bike was the tool that got me there. Because I live in a city, it's a tool to get me there much faster than a car stuck in traffic.

By taking advantage of the inefficient space left between bike lanes and cars, I was able to wobble through the worst traffic jams. And I can do it faster on an e-bike - usually topping out at around 40km/h (25mph), whereas a car crawls through traffic much more slowly. In the United States, where e-bike laws are more relaxed, commuters can use e-bike loads that can reach speeds of up to 45 kilometers per hour (28 MPH).

But when I'm going out to meet a group of friends, go to a meeting, or just get to grips with any other daily transportation needs, I don't want to get there sweating. On a pedal bike, this is a given.

But with my e-bike, I can walk the same route (often in less time) and decide how much exercise I'm prepared to take. On my pedal-assisted e-bike (which has no hand throttle), I can turn the electric motor's assist level up or down depending on how hard I want to work. On my electric bikes with accelerators, I can ride them like a motorcycle, using the pedals as foot pedals. The wind in my face is the best air-conditioning I could ask for, and I can get where I'm going in less time and with a bigger smile than if I was in a car or a bike. Oh yes, I'm dry (or just a little sweaty if I want to pedal a bit, but not soaked in sweat like I would on a non-electric bike).

The e-bike offered me a faster way to get around, and the all-terrain version could handle any path (or curb jump).

And I know many cyclists who can easily reach the same 25 MPH or more. I sometimes get passed by cyclists while working out in the morning. So I'm not saying that electric bikes are always faster than pedal bikes. But I wasn't too interested in shaving my legs, squeezing into a leotard, hopping on a $5,000 carbon-fiber road bike and pedaling furiously to spit out a couple of water bottles on my holster. That's not why I ride. I can get somewhere in my city faster and easier by bike than by car.

The fact that electric bikes don't require much physical effort also means they're perfect for utility jobs, such as riding home with a week's worth of groceries in the front and back baskets. It would be a tough process if you had to step on dozens of pounds of extra gear, but electric motors make it easy and fun!

The same goes for transporting passengers on an electric bicycle. This is the recipe that causes many pedal bikes to ride at extremely slow and painful speeds, especially if your passenger is a full-size adult or multiple children on the way home from school. But whether you pedal or use the accelerator freely, electric bikes make it easy to carry children and adults.

The RadRunner Plus is an excellent electric bike for carrying passengers!

Nowadays, finding a good electric bike has become easier than ever. I started riding an electric bicycle more than 10 years ago. At the time, I owned three of the five e-bikes in my city of half a million. Electric bikes are a mystery.

Oh yes, I had to make them myself because electric bikes are almost impossible to obtain from retail companies.

But those are old times. Today, there are literally hundreds of e-bike companies, each with several interesting models. E-bikes are available for all budgets ranging from a few hundred dollars to several thousand dollars.

It has never been easier to find a quality e-bike within a particular rider's budget that suits a particular rider's needs.

Lightweight folding electric bicycles are a simple and convenient solution for urban transportation.

health

Fitness is something I hear from the pedal-bike community about why "electric bikes are bad, mmkay?" The biggest debate in the world.

As the saying goes, if you want to exercise, come to the bicycle, if you want to lazy, come to the electric bike. But here's the thing: It's wrong, almost laughable. Studies after studies after studies have documented the fitness benefits of riding an e-bike (when actually using pedal assist instead of the accelerator).

In fact, some studies tracking e-bike ownership and use over time have actually found that e-bike owners get more exercise per week than bike owners. The reason is often related to the fact that electric bikes can be more fun because the motor can "get rid" of the worst hills and reduce the extreme consumption of certain riding spots, which causes many riders to either stay out longer, ride further, or ride more frequently during the week. The end result is that they get more exercise than they would on a non-e-bike.

In addition to all this documented research, I can provide you with some anecdotal evidence of my own. I'm lucky enough to live near the sea and every morning I try to walk my dog on the beach. My fitness tracker tells me that when I walk in deep sand, my heart rate increases from around 48 resting heart rate to around 105-115. For reference, running raised my heart rate to around 150 bpm. In other words, sandy walking is a moderate exercise, certainly not just walking on slippery surfaces, which puts me in the 90 bpm range. My heart rate again fell in the same 105-110 bpm range as I did a leisurely e-bike fitness ride with moderate pedal assistance. So basically, when I ride an e-bike for an hour, I get the same amount of exercise as walking on the beach for an hour. In addition to the fun and stimulation that riding provides, this is a very good exercise benefit. Plus, if I kill two birds with one stone by exercising while commuting or running errands, so much the better!

The idea that e-bike riders are "just lazy" couldn't be further from the truth. I was very active in the e-bike industry and went as far down the rabbit hole as I could. Overall, I found that the e-bike riders I met were healthier than the average person in their country. I don't know if it's a chicken-and-egg situation, but the two seem to go hand in hand. As for me, I don't even ride an e-bike to exercise like a vehicle. I run three to five miles a day to stay fit, and I usually pedal my e-bike quickly on the accelerator to get where I'm going, saving pedal assistance when I really want to do a fitness ride. But if you're the kind of person who can ride a two-wheeler, electric or moped, then you may become the kind of person who is either generally aware of the benefits of a healthy lifestyle, or who is pleasantly surprised that you accidentally start getting healthier after switching from a car to an electric bike. Either way, you'll be in a good place.

For me, riding an e-bike is more fun than fitness. But I still got two!

The cost of

Cost seems to be one area where pedal bikes seem to win. No beating around the bush here. The cost of an entry-level pedal bike is significantly lower than an entry-level electric bike.

Look at Walmart for a perfect example. You can walk out of that store with a cheap Cruiser bike for $184. But an electric version of the same bike costs $698. That's an extra $500 for some electric assistance. I generally don't recommend using a Walmart bike for a variety of reasons, but the economics in this example are pretty clear.

Here's the thing: There's more to the story. The entry level pedal bike is basically a piece of junk. The brakes are rubbish. The gear shift is garbage. Cables rust almost immediately. When you spin them, the wheels usually aren't even real.

But even entry-level e-bikes are riskier, so the parts are usually better. You'll start with better brakes, tires, etc.

It's not selfless. It's just that their lawyers know you'll go faster and ride more, so it's cheaper for the manufacturer to put in better parts than pay a hefty settlement later (or for less murky reasons, perhaps using better parts also prevents a brand from plummeting when those cheaper parts will degrade faster on higher-mileage e-bikes).

Electronic xp Lite

At $799, the Lectric XP LITE is great value for money, which has become an industry trend.

For whatever reason, electric bikes will generally be better built and use stronger components than the same entry-level or mid-level models in the pedal-bike world. They'll still be more expensive, but you'll get more and probably use it more.

If you switch from a car to an e-bike, the cost savings will start to add up immediately. Consider immediate savings in buying less gas, getting free parking, and reducing car maintenance costs.

While electric bikes are admittedly more expensive than pedal bikes, there are still plenty of good ones in the triple digit range, so don't think you have to spend thousands of dollars to get a decent electric two-wheeler. Spending more money can certainly help you improve quality and get more features, but it's not necessary to get a decent ride.

Are e-bikes' better '?

It sounds like a race, but I'm not pitting pedals against e-bikes.

It's not that a person is inherently better. But, one is definitely better for me. That's the key point here. Everyone is different, and everyone has to do calculus individually. But the fact that most people don't cycle these days is largely due to the fact that most people aren't interested in riding their bikes anywhere. (This is also because bike infrastructure is terrible, but we're slowly working on it.)

Since the main obstacle to cycling is having to ride the bike with your legs, electric bikes make a lot of sense. They offer all the benefits of a pedal bike, including fitness (if needed), but are much more fun to ride while providing improved practicality! It would be great if you could ride a bike every day. However, if you can't or won't, think of an e-bike as the equivalent of swimming in fins. You're still swimming -- just easier, faster, and more fun.

So if you previously thought a bike sounded good but wasn't practical for you, it might be time to reconsider.