Amish communities in Ohio and Pennsylvania are adopting electric bicycles (e-bikes) as a mode of transportation, despite the traditional association of the Amish with horse-drawn carriages.
E-bikes are being used for commuting to work, shopping, and other local errands, providing a low-cost and environmentally friendly transportation option in Amish towns across America.
“E-bikes are becoming increasingly popular, including among the Amish,” writer Kevin Williams wrote for Amish 365.
As of June 2022, the U.S. is home to around 373,620 Amish individuals of all ages distributed across 32 states, based on a study from Elizabethtown College.
While not all Amish groups adopt e-bikes due to varying church teachings, those who do find them practical for daily travel, with e-bike charging stations powered by solar panels becoming more common and safety concerns being addressed through education and road improvements.
David Mullett, owner of E-Bikes of Holmes County, a popular bike shop in Holmes County, is a member of the Old Order Amish Church.
“Horse and buggies will probably always be a part of the Amish community, but bike transportation is becoming more popular than the horse and buggy in the denominations that have allowed it,” Mullett told This Bike Life.
However, not all communities are in on the action.
While some Amish groups are embracing e-bikes for quicker travel, others remain conservative and cautious about adopting new technologies, aligning their choices with community beliefs and values.
"It depends on the group because I know that my community does not allow any bicycles at all," Emma Gingerich, 35, a former Swartzentruber Amish community member from Missouri told Fox News.
"I think they think that [non-electric and electric bikes are] considered modern technology because the English (non-Amish) people use it.”
Some Amish areas use electricity generated through solar panels, aligning well with e-bikes' small batteries that can be charged using solar power, and public e-bike charging stations powered by solar panels are becoming popular in these communities.
And other communities are now building their own E-bikes.
“Not only are the Amish using e-bikes, they're building them. I recently visited relatives in an Amish community in northern Indiana, and they had an e-trike that had been made by local Amish craftsmen. They retrofitted a trike with a battery and motor as well as a basket large enough for most shopping trips. Ingenious,” one online commenter said on Electrek.
In Pennsylvania Amish first responders in some communities are turning to motorized scooters equipped with strobe lights and batteries to quickly reach the firehouse during emergencies, providing a faster alternative for volunteer firefighters and EMTs.
Lancaster Online reports that despite the practicality of these scooters, they raise questions within the Amish community due to their relatively fast nature, contrasting with traditional modes of transportation like horses and buggies.
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