The Shanghaiist notes with concern that Chinese cities are banning electric bicycles.:

…bans on electric bikes are already in place in Zhuhai, Guangzhou, Wenzhou and Fuzhou. A Beijing ban could go into effect as early as January. Those in favor of such bans say electric bikes cause traffic congestion, accidents and - get this - pollution (from discarded lead batteries). Those opposed to the bans said in response: “Are you all out of your fucking minds?” Electric bikes use very little energy, are quiet, much smaller than cars and cause no pollution if cities provide users means to recycle batteries properly.

Serial Deviant Andrea doesn’t share the Shanghaiist’s concerns:

We all know that China is far more friendlier to cars than bikes these days. The good thing is most motorists (most of whom barely have any driving skills, by the way, but that’s a rant for another day) are aware of cyclists. China may be a city known for bicycles, but it is staggering how few of these cyclists actually know how to go in a straight line, follow traffic rules, watch where they’re going, take care to pay attention to their surroundings, and be sensible road users in general.

Those on (silent) electric bikes are exactly the same, they just do it without pedalling and go much faster. There is nothing worse than someone who is out of control on a push bike — except for someone who is out of control on an electric one. Electric bikes are dangerous between the legs of these people. Therefore, they should be banned.

Gaijin Biker retorts.:

Serial Deviant says the ban is a good idea because China’s bike riders are dangerous. But if that’s the case, China should ban dangerous riding, not the bikes themselves.

In theory, I agree with Gaijin Biker here. And I should add that before the authorities start cracking down on cyclists, they start doing something about other vehicular traffic. AsiaPundit takes taxis everywhere. On every journey the driver will break some form of traffic law. Most frequently it’s taking an illegal turn to get access to my flat. However, pulling into oncoming traffic to pass or driving in dedicated bike lanes are also common. As China is expected to see car use grow by double digits for the near future, now is a fine time to force drivers to abandon bad habits.

I don’t want to sound like a bitchy expat, but after addressing cycles, scooters and cars, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to start developing pedestrians’ walking skills.:

…not only are straight lines and predictible behavior frowned upon in Shanghai traffic - both vehicular and pedestrian - but most people here have only one use for the concept of vectors: to figure out how to cause a near-collision and disrupt the other guy’s course.

So I was crossing a street, walking a straight line, a head taller than anyone else in site, with a clear (that is, empty path before me when WHAM! a woman’s face connected with my left shoulder at high velocity.

Mrs AsiaPundit has a recurring back problem that is often set off by collisions with other pedestrians.

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