To reinforce their argument, four manufacturers have published photographs of a model equipped with thinner tyres than a normal fat bike. “If the House of Representatives closes one door, we open another,” writes Pieter van Beusekom of the fatbike brand Phatfour in a statement.
The manufacturers thus confirm the opinion of Minister Barry Madlener (Infrastructure, PVV). He insists that it is legally difficult to distinguish between fatbikes and “normal” electric bicycles. He had previously warned against a cat-and-mouse game with manufacturers who would modify their bikes to circumvent the legislation.
About the author
Daan de Vries is a news reporter from of Volkskrant.
The majority in the House of Representatives believes that it is feasible to introduce mandatory helmet use and a minimum age for fat bikes. On Tuesday, the House adopted a motion to this effect. In addition to thicker tires, MPs consider features such as increased weight and a non-height adjustable saddle to mark the distinction.
With the photos of the skinny bike, the manufacturers want to show that they can produce a bike within a few days that does not fit the definition proposed in the motion. This is primarily intended as a signal to the House, explains Niels Willems of fat bike manufacturer Brekr. “We have no ambition to produce a skinny bike, but we want to show that we can already produce something that would fall outside the proposed legislation.”
The MPs ignored Minister Madlener’s warning, pointing to the increasing number of serious accidents involving fatbikes. In the first six months of this year, the number of victims was as high as in the whole of 2023. Almost half of the victims were between 12 and 15 years old.
Sophisticated electric bicycles
Fat bike manufacturers are not against a minimum age, but like the Chamber, they want an age limit of 14 for all e-bikes. They say that accidents often involve souped-up e-bikes, which can exceed the legal maximum speed of 25 kilometres per hour. ‘The problem is not the width of the tyre or the shape of the saddle. The problem is that too many young people are using souped-up e-bikes,’ says Willems.
The Safety NL Knowledge Centre does not accept the view that souped-up e-bikes are the main problem. “The risk of injury is certainly higher at higher speeds, but we also see serious injuries with unspecified e-bikes,” says director Martijntje Bakker.
In five years, the number of 12- to 17-year-olds with serious injuries due to accidents involving e-bikes increased by 319 percent. “And certainly not all of those bikes are improved,” Bakker adds.
SafetyNL, like Minister Madlener and fatbike manufacturers, advocates an age limit for all e-bikes. “Excluding a specific category does not work,” says Bakker. Instead of a minimum age of 14, as suggested by the manufacturers, SafetyNL prefers to set the limit at 16 years.
Most parliamentary groups do not see the need for stricter rules for all types of e-bikes. They fear that such a measure would make cycling less attractive, when in fact the House wants to promote it. The ball is now in Minister Madlener’s court, who must decide whether to implement the motion passed on Tuesday.
