Electric Bicycles in the Urban Environment: Prospects and Constraints for Use in Megalopolises

Abstract

The development of a transport system that meets both the requirements of residents to ensure mobility while maintaining the ecology of the city, and the requirements of a business that needs an efficient logistics system is a topical task for most megalopolises. Moscow, being no exception, is making significant efforts to develop the city’s transport system, using both traditional methods of increasing the capacity of roads and developing the city’s infrastructure to use bicycle transport, which can reduce the load on the city’s public transport and positively affect the city’s economy and ecology. Recently, electric vehicles of individual use began to appear on the streets of the city: electric bicycles, electric scooters, etc. The objective of the research is to consider problems and assess the prospects for using individual electric vehicles in megalopolises, at the example of Moscow, for both recreational and utilitarian purposes. The study used as research methods the analysis of the experience of development of these vehicles abroad, including in the urban transport system, and the analysis of the regulatory aspects of the use of electric bikes to determine the main areas that need to be taken into account when using electric bikes in the urban environment. The authors also evaluate the possibilities of their use, considering categories of goods and the features of routing. The conclusion is drawn on the large existing potential of the use of electric bicycles as of an instrument of urban logistics, and on the advantages of electric bicycles as of an alternative urban transport mode.