micromobilitybiz Delivering news updates to the micromobility industry, focusing on e-bikes, e-scooters and green transport
Industry and regulatory bodies within the wider eMobility, LEV and e-bike industry are vying to shape the future of the e-bike, with regulations which will, potentially, define what an e-bike is and is not – for years to come.
For a product type which remains in its infancy, the disruptive effect of change will always present opportunities and challenges. Change is embraced by some and pushed back hard against by others. Imagine being a blacksmith as people began talking about the automobile…
At present, the eMTB voice is disproportionately loud, drowning out well-reasoned cycling-as-transport considerations. This risks limiting future innovation, preventing the cycling industry from successfully competing for new customers – people not currently using a bicycle, who may come to choose an assisted bicycle as part of the transport eMobility / micromobility shift.
Why does this matter for the traditional cycling industry?
‘Because the future transport-based customer opportunity will be shaped by those who can engage the general public.’
Currently transitioning to four-wheeled EV – the wider population is, in increasing numbers, also looking at two-wheeled EV. Pedal assistance is the critical element when the focus is on enabling more people to make better transport choices.
This requires a vehicle type – the e-bike – that is as widely accessible as possible, ensuring anyone can lug a load, and/or passengers, up a hill with an eCargo bike, or simply choose to travel further, more often, because the return commute is now easier and more manageable.
Competition for future customers, from outside of the cycling industry
Choosing a bicycle – as a mode of transport – is dependent upon making the e-bike an attractive and engaging alternative.
If limitations on assistance are locked in for the bicycle-related e-bike, the risk is that new mobility solutions providers will acquire these customers, and the legacy cycling industry will have missed out on a once-in-a-generation opportunity to go truly mainstream.
With these considerations in mind, MicromobilityBiz shares, unedited and in full, the LEVA EU open letter.
LEVA-EU has issued an open letter, addressed to ZIV, CONEBI, and the European Commission, warning that the ZIV proposal for more requirements on Electrically Power Assisted Cycles (EPACs) would cripple innovation, accessibility, and sustainability in Europe’s light electric mobility sector.
The open letter – now open for signatures from companies, researchers, users, and associations across the LEV community – calls on the two trade associations and on the European institution to reject ZIV’s proposal and instead work with stakeholders on a dedicated, technology-neutral LEV Regulation.
What’s in ZIV’s Proposal?
On 7 April 2025, ZIV published its position paper “E-bikes – Active Mobility as Success Factor”. Behind the polished language lies a restrictive agenda: arbitrary technical limits on EPACs, including:
- Maximum assistance ratios
- Peak power caps
- Vehicle weight limits
If enacted, these rules would force countless Electrically Power Assisted Cycles (EPACs) into the L-category type-approval system under Regulation 168/2013 — a costly, outdated, and unsuitable regime.
Why we wrote the Open Letter
In the letter, LEVA-EU and co-signatories warn that this proposal would:
- Eliminate entire categories of LEVs crucial for logistics, inclusivity, and sustainable transport.
- Discriminate against elderly, disabled, and physically weaker users, restricting their access to essential mobility.
- Protect incumbent interests while penalising innovators and start-ups.
- Undermine the EU’s Green Deal and climate goals, limiting the modal shift potential of LEVs.
The open letter stresses: “Do not let Europe become the desert of light electric mobility innovations.”
A structural problem needs a structural fix.
The letter also highlights the legal flaw in EU rules: the split between Regulation 168/2013 and the Machinery Directive, both inadequate for Light Electric Vehicles (LEVs).
Today, nearly identical vehicles face radically different rules, one example:
- A 250W EPAC escapes type-approval,
- While that same EPAC with 300W must undergo expensive and unsuitable testing.
This violates the principle of technology neutrality enshrined in EU law. Instead of correcting this, ZIV’s proposal would make the situation worse.
The Call: A dedicated LEV regulation
The open letter urges all addressees the European Commission to brush aside ZIV’s restrictions and instead work with the LEV community to establish a dedicated LEV Regulation — a fair, proportionate, and future-proof framework that supports innovation, accessibility, and Europe’s climate goals. This is more than a policy debate. It is a defining moment: will Europe lead the world in clean, inclusive mobility, or will it allow protectionism and outdated rules to hold us back?
About LEVA-EU:
Established in 2017, LEVA-EU is the only trade association in Europe to work exclusively for Light Electric Vehicles (LEVs). The Light Electric Vehicle Association in Europe (LEVA-EU) represents the strategic interests of light electric vehicle distributors, manufacturers and suppliers to promote the development, sale, and use of LEVs in the EU vis-à-vis the European Institutions.
LEVA-EU has around 65 members inside and outside the EU.
