Seminar targets e-bike issues

A seminar on “Electric Bicycle Co-Governance” was held Friday. Municipal and district political advisers and experts were invited to offer suggestions on the management of the city’s 5.5 million electric bikes (e-bikes), referred to as e-mopeds or e-scooters in other countries.

E-bikes present various social governance issues, such as inadequate laws and regulations covering production and sales, low penalties for violations, and unsafe battery charging. During the seminar, attendees highlighted the difficulties encountered in the management of e-bikes.

Wang Shuhuai, general manager of SF Express Shenzhen Co., emphasized that e-bikes are an irreplaceable tool for the logistics industry but pose four main challenges concerning management, charging, driving, and parking. He also suggested that big data could be used to assess the situation and establish temporary parking points.

To address the parking issue, Wang Xue, director of the Transportation Research Institute at Shenzhen Vocational and Technical University, suggested that regulators establish designated parking areas for e-bikes in new residential and commercial areas.

In response to management difficulties, Jiang Lei, a political adviser, suggested implementing a driving license demerit system for e-bike violations, whereby drivers accumulating points would be required to undergo road law education.

Wang Lina, another political adviser, advocated for continuous improvement in legislation to regulate e-bike production standards. She urged the government to leverage market forces to address current problems, citing the successful model of “shared e-bikes” in cities like Beijing.