TY  - JOUR
AU  - Hoj, Taylor H
AU  - Bramwell, Jacob J
AU  - Lister, Cameron
AU  - Grant, Emily
AU  - Crookston, Benjamin T
AU  - Hall, Cougar
AU  - West, Joshua H
PY  - 2018
DA  - 2018/11/29
TI  - Increasing Active Transportation Through E-Bike Use: Pilot Study Comparing the Health Benefits, Attitudes, and Beliefs Surrounding E-Bikes and Conventional Bikes
JO  - JMIR Public Health Surveill
SP  - e10461
VL  - 4
IS  - 4
KW  - physical activity
KW  - bicycling
KW  - obesity
KW  - physical fitness
KW  - cardiorespiratory fitness
AB  - Background: The emergence of electric pedal-assist bicycles (e-bikes) presents an opportunity to increase active transportation by minimizing personal barriers of engaging in physical activity. Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the beliefs of individuals using e-bikes for active transport and report preliminary biometric measurements while using e-bikes for physical activity compared with conventional bikes. Methods: Participants used both conventional bicycles and e-bikes to compare energy expenditure while riding on the study route. Apple smart watches were used to track each participant’s heart rate, distance, speed, and time while riding both bicycles. A total of 3 survey instruments were used to estimate beliefs: one administered before riding the bicycles, a second administered after riding a conventional bike, and the final survey completed after riding an e-bike. Survey instruments were constructed using constructs from the theory of planned behavior. Results: The study sample (N=33) included adults aged between 19 and 28 years. Paired t test analysis revealed that participants believed a conventional bike was more likely than an e-bike to benefit their physical health (P=.002) and save them money (P=.005), while an e-bike was perceived to be more likely than a conventional bike to save them time (P<.001). Paired t test analysis revealed participants significantly agreed more with the statement that they could ride an e-bike most days (P=.006) compared with a conventional bike. After participants traveled approximately 10 miles on each type of bicycle, participants’ mean average heart rate while riding the e-bike was 6.21 beats per minute lower than when riding the conventional bike (P=.04), but both were significantly higher than resting heart rate (P<.001). Conclusions: This pilot study suggests that e-bikes are an active form of transportation capable of providing much of the cardiovascular health benefits obtained during conventional bike use. E-bikes may help reduce some of the obstacles to conventional bike use, such as increased transportation time, decreased convenience, and physical fatigue. 
SN  - 2369-2960
UR  - http://publichealth.jmir.org/2018/4/e10461/
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2196/10461
UR  - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30497998
DO  - 10.2196/10461
ID  - info:doi/10.2196/10461
ER  -