Cycling-tech startup Swytch is helping commuters beat the cost-of-living crisis by reducing the price of quality eBikes to under $500, enabling anyone to travel electric for as little as $0.002 (0.2 cents) per mile.
Following the launch of Swytch’s electric bike conversion kit, which turns any bike into an eBike and features a pocket-sized eBike battery, the company has been inundated with more than 27,000 orders. It has grown the size of the eBike markets in the United States and the United Kingdom by 1.6 percent and 5 percent respectively, in only one month.
At a time when many people find themselves in a rough economy, and the average worker spends 20 percent of their salary on commuting annually, commuters have been forced to seek more affordable sources of transport.
As a result, the number of people cycling is at a five-year high according to global market research company Mintel. Bike conversion specialists also released data from a study that finds the main reason why Americans consider the purchase of an eBike is to save money on traveling or commuting, a burgeoning cost that stands at an average of $8,466 per annum across the nation.
For this reason, Swytch has engineered a solution that allows cyclists to own a state-of-the-art electric bike for under $500, with a pocket-sized battery that costs less than two cents to charge per 10 miles range.
The Swytch Kit is available to pre-order on Swytch’s website with prices from $599 (with 50 percent discount applied, delivery in January/February) or from as little as $499 (with a 60 percent discount applied, delivery in March/April).
The Swytch conversion kit features a pocket-sized battery (the “Power Pack”) which is similar in size to a large smartphone, weighs 1.5 pounds (700g), recharges in one hour from your mains power socket and provides 10 miles range. Increasing the range is as easy as clicking off one battery and connecting another or upgrading to the larger battery option available with 20 miles range that weighs 2.4 pounds (1.1kg).
The system provides 250W of pedal-assist power via a high-torque front motor wheel, allowing users to accelerate to 20mph and climb gradients of 30 percent without breaking a sweat.
Switch is has become a leader in the electric bike industry with more than 40,000 customers worldwide using its previous generation kit. The benefits of “up-cycling” an existing bike into an electric “Swytch” bike include:
- Keep the bike you love, and convert it electric
- 200kg of CO2e is saved v.s. buying a brand new eBike
- $1,500 financial saving v.s. Buying a complete eBike of equivalent spec.
