Don't confuse average speed with maximum speed, or maximum speed with maximum assisted speed. There is nothing to stop any ebike from being propelled at well over the 15.5mph assistance level, other than your fitness. I use an ebike - an Orbea Gain e-road bike - I bought it to enable me to ride with the club leisure rides after my leg strength has been severely reduced after developing vascular problems, Up to 15,5 mph fine, but the speed of most rides hovers around 16 - 18mph on the flat, and one finds it hard work to keep a heavy ebike rolling at that level after power has been cut off. For me a 20mph cut off would make much more sense. Perhaps for e-road bikes only, and not for 'utility' ebikes, where a 15,5mph assistance cut off is more appropriate. 

15.5mph is way too slow, because you're not keeping up with the general speed of other road users, which includes other cyclists who are going at 20mph on ordinary road bikes.

It's actually more dangerous to be going at such a low speed. 

20mph is a much more sensible speed, and feels more natural. 

Hi, couldn't find the petition on the government website? Can you post a direct link please.
 

I would definitely support it and especially the need to increase the power of the motor, some of us are on the heavy side and live in a hilly area so 250 is just not strong enough

A top speed of 15mph is quite slow but for all but the longest journeys is not going to cost you a massive loss in time. 

No, absolutely not.

On an open road, with little traffic, and few pedestrians, there would be no real problem with an increased 'assisted' speed. The real difference, especially if maximum power is also increased, is the increased rate of acceleration, and the relative ease of repeated acceleration - this means that pedalec riders could ride at much higher speeds in marginal conditions, much more readiliy.

For example, even relatively fit cyclists would struggle to repeatedly accelerate to 20mph in stop-go high traffic volume condititions - and the resulting lower average speed keeps things relatively safe, reducing the potential for collisions, and reducing the severity of impacts should collisions happen. The thought of pedelecs accelerating rapidly and filtering at 20mph+ is frankly terrifying.

More powerful pedalecs will need bigger motors with bigger batteries, stronger frames, stronger wheels with bigger tyres, uprated brakes (with ABS?), and a greater need for suspension, leading to much higher weights, further increasing the danger to pedestrians and other cyclists.

On the one hand, as an experienced cyclist I feel confident in controlling a bike at 20mph so raising the limit to that seems trivial and if it drives adoption of ebikes, why not?  Most of the motor systems available are already capable of 20mph assistance with just a software update anyway.  The current 15.5mph is not that much slower; faster than is sensible in many shared-spaces already, so although the suggestion that raising the bar would lead to extra accidents is probably true, such accidents would still be the responsbility of the rider.

And yet, if we're saying this would attract new riders, we're not necessarily talking about experienced cyclists.  Some of these people will be used to going at a certain speed in their cars, with excellent brakes, and lots of safety systems to save them from their mistakes, and not used to pedestrians and dogs jumping out into 'their' lane.  Perhaps 'faster' ebikes should be mandated to have hydraulic brakes, excluded from shared spaces, require training... but that's just the S-pedelces rules cast differently.

Ultimately, in my opinion an ebike should be a human device.  "At the speed of the land" as the saying goes.  15.5mph is fine.

I very much agree with the proposal. It's allowing assistance up to 20 mph. It is not necessarily increasing speeds, that's still controlled by the rider. E-bikes are not limited to 15.5 mph so the increased risk of collisions argument is entirely specious. There's nothing to prevent an e-bike, or any bike doing more than 20 mph. Average speeds are completely irrelevant. To maintain an average of 15.5 mph you have to travel much faster than that. The average speed of cars is also immaterial. You might as well say pedestrians ony manage 3 mph so why should anything else go faster? On the roads I travel having assistance up to 20 mph would greatly improve my safety. Should you not require that on your journey is very good, but don't impose your requirements on me thanks.

If you think 15mph is too slow, then another 5mph isn't really going to change your mind is it?  Most ebike trips are in urban areas where 15mph is faster than the average speed of the cars, so is perfectly fine.

There is also the increased risk of collisions and higher risk of serious injury to pedestrians or other cyclists, and since collision energy increases with the square of the speed, that's a considerable extra risk.

Personally I think 20mph makes sense.  More and more roads across the country are now operating a 20mph speed limit.  If an e-bike can take people to that speed they can become part of traffic rather than being seen as a slow moving obstacle by drivers.  Ultimately the cyclist still has to pedal to hit that speed.  I think if the limit was 20 we would also see a lot of people who currently de-restrict their bikes not doing so anymore because as the saying goes, "20 is plenty".