A CONVERSATION ABOUT ELECTRIC BIKES

March 9, 2022 • Live via Zoom

(Scroll down to watch the original Zoomcast)

Bicycling has been an enduring presence in American public life for well over a century, at times booming in popularity. We are currently experiencing another "bike boom," due in part to the rise in popularity of electric bicycles, or e-bikes.

Recently, there have been a lot of questions regarding possible regulation of e-bikes in Nashville. With these questions in mind, a panel of national, regional, and local transportation advocates and experts convene to discuss and bridge any understanding gaps surrounding e-bikes, and e-bike usage.

Hosted by Walk Bike Nashville and Nashville BCycle, this conversation hopes to help answer the questions: what exactly are e-bikes, who is riding them, and why it matters. The panel's conversation also covers safety, infrastructure, bike share, common policies, practices, and enforcement.

Check out these fun notes summarizing the event created by our live information illustrator, Ayumi Fukuda Bennett.

MEET YOUR PANEL:

Dr. Chris Cherry | University of Tennessee

Dr. Chris Cherry is a Professor in Civil Engineering at the University of Tennessee. His research is centered on the intersection of policy, technology, travel behavior, safety and sustainability in the transportation sector. His past and current work spans the globe, with projects in Asia and the US. Focusing on low-impact transportation modes like e-bikes, much of the work of his career has aimed to understand the role of lightweight electric vehicles (micromobility) in the transportation space, starting with his PhD dissertation on e-bikes in China from UC Berkeley in 2007. He directs the Light Electric Vehicle Education and Research (LEVER) Initiative and is a PI on several ongoing projects focused on safety of vulnerable road users (pedestrians and micromobility) funded by USDOT, TRB, and TDOT.

Lindsey Ganson | Walk Bike Nashville

Lindsey joined the staff of Walk Bike Nashville in April 2019 as Director of Advocacy & Communications after serving on the Walk Bike Nashville board. Prior to joining the Walk Bike Nashville staff, Lindsey was an Account Supervisor at MP&F Strategic Communications, where her clients included the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and the Metro Nashville Planning Department’s Transportation Demand Management program. She also led MP&F’s client team for the multi-year public outreach efforts for nMotion, the 25-year strategic plan of WeGo/the Nashville Metro Transit Authority and the Regional Transportation Authority of Middle Tennessee.

Before moving to Nashville in 2014, she was the chief operating officer of Transportation Alternatives in New York City, where she led grassroots campaigns to improve transportation policies. She also served as chief of staff of the New York City Department of Environmental Protection and as a manager of NYC & Company, New York City’s Convention and Visitors’ Bureau.

A Brooklyn native, Lindsey holds a Bachelor's degree from Georgetown University.

Ash Lovell, Ph.D. | PeopleforBikes

Ash leads PeopleForBikes’ electric bicycle policy and campaign initiatives. Prior to joining the team, Ash brought people together to work on big social and environmental projects including urban sustainability and large landscape conservation for the National Park Service. When she's not working with industry partners and advocating for e-bike access for PeopleForBikes, you can find Ash riding around the Front Range of Colorado on her electric cargo bike with her two little boys in tow.

MODERATOR

Michael Briggs
Assistant Director of Mobility at Vanderbilt

HOST

Elese Daniel
Nashville BCycle

Live Illustration Notes

Ayumi Bennett will be illustrating the panel discussion. She’ll be sharing her illustrations in real time during the discussion as well as an “inforgraphic” type flyer/file afterward.