Atlanta Considers E-Bike Subsidy

With e-bike rebate programs proving extremely popular in other cities, Atlanta could be the next to offer rebates to residents who purchase e-bikes, reports Meris Lutz for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Making e-bikes more accessible can help Atlanta residents lower their carbon footprints, spend more time outdoors, and more easily replace short car trips. According to Lutz, “Georgia law treats e-bikes as regular bicycles that do not require licensing or registration as long as the motor is less than 750 watts and the speed tops out at 20 miles per hour.”

Councilman Matt Westmoreland, who sponsored legislation to create an e-bike subsidy study committee, hopes to enact a program by Earth Day on April 22. Although the details have yet to be hammered out, he envisions about a $1 million program to start, possibly with federal money, with larger rebates for income-qualifying residents.

The article outlines the city’s recent failures to meet its goals when it comes to bike infrastructure, which impacts how residents feel about biking on the city’s streets. But recent changes in city government, as well as a $750 million infrastructure approved by voters that includes funding for protected bike lanes, could bode well for Atlanta’s bike infrastructure.