Bicycles (electric and pure pedal-powered kind) are an important part of a multi-modal transportation solution. We’ve seen a few of these on the road and at some of our electric vehicle events.

We recently received an inquiry about the status of electric bikes on the island:

“Hey everybody!
Can anyone start talking about other EV’s such as bikes and motorcycles? I have been overwhelmed with number of great electric bikes, some foldable and easy to pack up and go in a car or on the bus (as surveyed on the web). However, a big problem seems to exist around the shipping of them and of course the batteries. Even though many deals advertised in the web include free shipping (not an inconsiderable factor…in fact a deal killer for me) on the mainland. Only one shop in Kona I have called has just one favorite model. That model is never discussed on the popular websites. How long do we have to wait for electric two wheelers here?“

One of our members offered this response:

“I encountered the same issue, trying to find an e-bike locally. I ended up getting a bike from a company called Evelo [evelo.com], since they had a 10-day risk-free trial, including paying for shipping both ways. They are not cheap, but they are having a Black Friday sale currently, which helps make their prices more reasonable. I purchased the Delta model, which I have been very pleased with after a couple of years’ use.”

Where can you purchase these e-Bikes locally? There is at lease one shop in Kona (Big Island Electric Bike Co, 73-5619 Kauhola St, Kailua-Kona). There are more on Oahu, e.g., eBikes Hawaii (https://www.ebikeshawaii.com) and Aloha E-Bikes (http://www.alohaebike.com).