For commuting around town or for getting someone out on a bike that might otherwise chose to drive, I think e-bikes are rad. In the past, e-bikes have been heavy, clunky, and didn’t get much mileage, making them tough to adopt. Following design cues from Faraday and others, Pure Cycles came up with a new e-bike that not only looks pretty cool, but gets 40 miles to the charge. Not to mention a bunch of other smart, connected features — and it’s pretty affordable, too.
The Volta e-bike runs on a rear hub motor that keeps the bike balanced and delivers performance directly to the rear wheel. There are 4 power modes, so you can get as much assistance as you want depending on terrain or type of riding. The battery is hidden in the top tube so it doesn’t scream e-bike — and you get 40 miles of range before it’s time to recharge. Pure Cycles will even let you choose between a belt drive or a classic chain drive for your Volta.
Smart features include integrated headlights and taillights that activate at the first sign of low-light, and an automatic brake light to help keep you visible on the road, in traffic. The Volta comes with integrated GPS tracking so that you can not only remember where you parked it, but be alerted and follow the thieves if your bike should be stolen. Pure Cycles designed a app to go with the bike for recording health data such as workout details, calories burned, and tracking your rides.
The integrated front basket lets you load up your bike with groceries, a briefcase, beer, or even your dog. And what good is a great commuter bike if you can’t get it back up to your apartment or down from the office at the end of the day? The Volta weighs 35 pounds — about the same as a bag of food for Fido.
Many of the early bird prices are already sold out after just a couple days on Kickstarter, so you can currently pre-order your Volta e-bike for $1499 — delivery expected at the end of the summer.