Final 12 months on the EICMA Milan Milan Bike Present, I stumbled throughout a novel-looking car often known as the Ponie P2. Described as a van substitute, the 60 mph (100 km/h) electrical bike sports activities an enormous cargo case under the seat and was prepping for manufacturing on the time. Now a 12 months later, I caught up with the corporate on the similar present to find out how the Ponie P2 is now getting ready to hit the highway.
The corporate behind the bike, PNY, has spent a lot of the previous 12 months finalizing its manufacturing path and is able to begin a number of pilot applications, together with with DHL and the native postal service, amongst others who’ve signed as much as snag a few of the first 50 Ponie P2s that simply rolled off the manufacturing line.
With 400L (105 gallons) of space for storing between the middle cargo space and an elective rear trunk, the Ponie P2 really is nearly as near a “van replacer” as you may get on two wheels. There are some bigger four-wheeled cargo e-bikes on the market, however they aren’t as quick or as nimble, limiting their use to bike lanes and in areas the place sidewalk parking is met with a blind eye.
The Ponie P2 may not carry as a lot cargo as a Sprinter van, nevertheless it may doubtless do a complete route of mail deliveries whereas sustaining the identical lane-splitting and parking benefits of a motorbike – to not point out the flexibility to achieve minimal freeway speeds.
The bike can be nearly as steady as may very well be, sporting its massive 6.7 kWh CATL battery as a flat pack under the primary cargo space. That low middle of gravity is additional aided by the hub motor holding the motor weight at mere axle top. It gained’t do the unsprung weight any favors, however a supply bike isn’t precisely efficiency territory, both.
The P2 even has fairly a superb vary per cost, quoted at 150 km (93 miles) when touring at metropolis speeds of 35 km/h (22 mph). Hopping on the freeway at high velocity is certain to drop that vary determine, nevertheless it’s additionally exhausting to get the mail within the field precisely at freeway speeds, so riders are going to should decelerate ultimately.
The PNY Ponie P2 appears to straddle the road between bikes and scooters, providing seating of the previous with utility of the latter. A big 7-inch TFT colour show and ABS brakes supply the type of trendy bike options many riders have come to anticipate, and there’s even a smaller glove field cargo space with an included USB charging port (splendid for the rider’s personal private belongings in order that they aren’t mixing with everybody else’s packages and postcards).
The corporate was additionally displaying off built-in security know-how from RiderDome, a startup that makes use of AI-based pc imaginative and prescient and sensors to supply 360-degree risk detection particularly for motorcyclists.
The identical body is designed to combine with a number of cargo equipment, together with the big middle cargo field seen on the DHL bike in addition to a number of smaller containers reminiscent of these utilized by meals supply corporations.
I’m hoping to check out one of many first 50 PNY Ponie P2 bikes that can be used within the upcoming pilot applications with DHL and different clients. For now, I solely bought a static check on the sales space (above), however the bikes really feel unusually regular if you’re sitting on them. They could appear to be a stretch limousine of the bike world, however they only really feel like a unadorned roadster with a cushty foot-forward seating place – no less than, at relaxation.
The jury continues to be out on how they’ll carry out within the wild, however PNY has excessive hopes that extra cities all over the world will quickly be changing lane-blocking cargo vans with lane-splitting cargo motorbikes like these.
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