this post was submitted on 25 Sep 2023
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You can get cheap chinese micromobility vehicles though
For now. I expect NYC's recent UL testing requirement for e-mobility batteries will be adopted by more US cities out of a combination of anti-China hysteria and the demographics involved.
To be fair, some of those batteries are sketchy as frig (looking at you gotway/begode)
Is there anything stopping Chinese companies from getting these certifications? Or are they just inherently unsafe and can't get them?
There's nothing stopping Chinese companies from getting them other than extra cost. And as they serve a global market rather than just the US, the loss of business might not be worth it to the Chinese companies, considering how large the domestic segment is. Like why bear all the extra cost of UL cert for the NY market (or even the US market) when you can continue selling to China, SEA, India, etc. There's a CBA to be done there and I don't imagine it results in these companies shelling out.
Makes sense, thanks for the explainer
Like what? You mean like one of those little changli truck bois that can only go like bicycle speeds?
Escooters, electric unicycles, ebikes, eskate, that kind of thing.
There are literally hundreds of videos on YouTube of people buying these cheap Chinese alternatives and I’ve yet to see one hold up to regular use. There’s one of an ebike catching on fire after applying the brakes downhill for like 100ft. There’s another where a dude bought one of these electric starter cars and drove it around town. It was falling apart as he drove and wouldn’t work after the second trip.
With the Chinese market being notoriously cluttered with cheap products that lack any sense of quality control and cut corners everywhere, it makes me wonder if the only well made products are the ones being produced for other companies outside of China.
I think huawei would have been a game changer in the west and could have heavily impacted the public opinion on this, buuuuut US govt wants exclusive rights on spying on their citizens instead. 🤷🏻♂️
There is an insane sampling bias there since youtubers want to make exactly that video so they will actively seek out the products that let them make that video. I'd further point out that the products actual Chinese people buy largely don't have those problems.
I suppose you’re right, but I would think many people would be just as interested in quality products that are a cheaper alternative, perhaps more so than watching them fail. Product hype is a thing for a reason.
I can’t speak for the domestic Chinese products as I’ve never been there.
All I'm hearing is that you're a credulous dumbass who gets all their info from youtube. There's also 1000 youtube videos saying CHINA WILL COLLAPSE IM TEN MINUTES.
I've ridden my EUC literally over 9000 miles
That’s an insane amount of standing lol
What brand is it?
Inmotion
There's also literally hundreds of videos on YouTube of Tesla's falling apart and iPhone batteries bulging. A product working as intended doesn't really get clicks.
Well, not that those aren't useful in some capacity, there's the question of hauling groceries and such home, not to mention we need protection from the elements with increasingly brutal summers, and also violent thunderstorms. There's the question of these things being able to trek through deep snow too, to consider.
I guess you could just fit it with baskets and wear a big backpack... but honestly, how far down the hole do we have to go here?
Carbrain from a hexbear, for shame.
I'll start you on some basic NotJustBikes
Groceries
Snow
This one line is heavily assuming that the above poster lives in a urban area, meanwhile they could be someone like me who lives out in essentially a rural area. In my particular case I live in one of the many 'rural cities' (and one that's doing "better" than a grand majority of them) the populate the US outside of your big cities.
Honestly it feels that rural areas just keep being a huge glaring blind spot for most everyone here.
Thank you for the provided resources. Many of the things I've been concerned about were addressed.
However, there's something I want to clear up here.
I'd like to know what your thought process was that caused you to start off with this, so I can address it.
I'm not the type that particularly likes car-centric planning and car-centric infrastructure. I've understood that walkable communities were much easier and less stressful, less expensive, and more efficient in saving on fuel costs and environmental impact for quite some time.
I simply have concerns, which should be understandable, and I want to resolve those concerns in good faith.
The thought process was essentially just "this is the type of post I've seen a thousand times from redditors and @lemm.ee users."
Worries about things like groceries and snow are extremely common themes of car centric reaction post, and I've seen posts much like yours countless times both back on
and on the wider lemmy whenever I mention bicycles or electric micromobility.
The biggest obstacle as an American who has lived in Europe that I see is our infrastructure. You can live comfortably fine your entire life without owning a vehicle in most of Europe. Public transportation isn’t disgusting and is on time. There are many many times more options for travel. But in Europe, they have the advantage of having civilizations living in the area for hundreds, even thousands of years in some spots. This causes the towns to become more compact as there is limited land available compared to the states. Major cities such as Chicago or New York could adopt something like this, but the vast majority of people don’t live in these cities. Instead the towns are expanded and vast in comparison. It’s not uncommon at all to work in a different town, have your kids go to school in a different town, etc.
I work in construction, I and most of the others in my area commute daily. I cannot take public transportation because 1. It doesn’t exist in any area nearby where I’ve worked. And 2. Even if it did, it doesn’t run at 4AM when I’m helping create the cluster of traffic on the highways. I was spending $1300/month in diesel to commute my Truck. I’ve since purchased a Tesla Long Range. While it is somewhat cheaper, it’s not a major difference, but more importantly I have to be extremely careful with my driving and charging. I have to make sure I charge every evening and if I only commute to and from work without additional stops, I’m looking at 20% charge left. This is on the long range model. On top of that, it’s almost half the price to charge from a supercharger than it is from Home due to the power companies having a monopoly. The battery isn’t supposed to be used on a supercharger daily, isn’t supposed to be charged more than 80% daily, and isn’t supposed to be drained to less than 20% daily. Degradation is a huge unforeseen problem in the market. Solar is ridiculously expensive and the majority of families aren’t homeowners.
I’m all for going electric and car free, but we aren’t going to be truly capable for another decade or two.
See, @sicklemode@hexbear.net this is the type of carbrain I thought you were.
Don't be rude and don't waste my time filing mod reports just because you don't agree with something.
lol feel free to rebuttal all of my completely valid points instead of reverting to name calling. If you actually read the comment , it’s pretty clear I’m not but okay 🙄
How far do you live from work and why?
Today, 75 miles away. Yesterday was 88.
Because I work in the construction industry, so I must go where the job site is located
Isn't it fucked how your boss was basically taking $15,600 out of your annual pay by not covering your commute costs?
It's part of the job, truly ask anyone in construction and also why I traded in my expensive truck. Nobody is taking money from me, as I voluntarily go to the job. I could sleep at the job site if I wanted (some guys do). I'm also entitled to a hotel room if I really wanted, but I'd rather drive the couple of hours, eat dinner with the kids, and sleep with my wife in my bed. There are some perks such as fuel cards, however I switched companies only 6 months agobso I'm low man on the totem pole for it, or wait till I get promoted. I'm in a union and well taken care of. I can just as easily find something closer, but I love my job, I love my crew, and I love my company. At the end of the day, there's plenty of ways we are all getting screwed, but my company isn't one of them. I'd rather focus on the monopoly cartels such as PGE, Verizon, Blackrock, and a plethora of others that are directly costing me much more and affecting my cost of living.
Ok I'm gonna start a struggle session here. Bikes aren't practical in America atleast atm because:
We're not a perfectly flat glorified city state like the Netherlands
Certain subcultures in the US will literally try to kill you with their car if they see you riding a bike on the road.
Bikeseats are uncomfortable.
Ebikes
Kill them first
Skill issue
I mean, you have a point. Americna infrastructure is wildly hostile to bikes in most places. In my area bikes go on the sidewalk as a mater of course or someone will make it weird. So then you have deal with poorly maintained sidewalks.