E-Bike sales still going strong
(SFZ) The e-bike continues to be on the road to success. In 2015, 66`332 new e-bikes were sold in Switzerland, an increase of 15.1 % over the previous year. The city bike increased slightly, as did the mountain bike (including e-mountain bike).
In 2006, 300`000 new bikes were sold in Switzerland, 3,000 of which - just 1% - were e-bikes. In 2015, 323`000 new bicycles were sold, more than 66`332 of which - or 20.5% - were e-bikes. In other words, one in five bicycles sold in Switzerland today is an e-bike. The rapid increase in this category of vehicle in the favour of Swiss cyclists continues unabated. The reasons for the boom: With the e-bike, the ratio of range, benefits and costs is right. It offers many people a relaxed, fatigue-free ride and allows them to cover greater distances with less effort. The normal city bike with full equipment such as lights, chain guard, mudguards and luggage rack (excluding tandems, folding bikes etc.) found 69`573 buyers last year, a slight increase of 1.4% compared to the previous year. Its advantages compared to the e-bike: less weight, lower price. It is mainly used in cities and conurbations.
Mountain bikes: in demand with and without e-drive
According to statistics from Velosuisse, the association of Swiss bicycle suppliers, 112,244 mountain bikes (total of all MTBs with 26 inch, 27.5 inch and 29 inch wheels) were sold last year, 4,836 less than in 2014. But beware, this figure is only a reflection of sales of mountain bikes WITHOUT electric motor. Many mountain bikers today ride an MTB with e-support. A total of 19'687 E-MTBs were sold, 5'990 or 43.7 % more than last year. Overall, the MTB sector thus grew by 0.9%. 15'816 road racing bikes found their buyers in 2015, which is 4.9% of the total volume and an increase of 1.3% over the previous year. The number of road racing cyclists has remained at about the same level for years. An increasing trend that has been observed in recent years is that many hobby road racers are not only getting on their road bikes for training sessions, but also on mountain bikes - and vice versa. The demand for junior bikes with 20 to 24 inch wheels shows a differentiated picture: city bikes achieved a slight increase with 14,523 units sold, of the sports bikes - MTB, freestyle bikes etc. - 31,895 units were sold, a decrease of 15.8 %.
March 11th, 2016