California is considering a electric motorcycle authority which could lead to an eightfold increase in sales, CalMatters reports.
The proposed rules, the California Air Resources Board (CARB), the powerful regulator that sets the state's air quality standards, are scheduled to vote on Nov. 7. to enforce the credit system resulting in 10% zero-emission motorcycle sales by 2028 and 50% by 2035, up from around 1% today.
At the same time, new emissions standards for gasoline bikes will lower their emissions for the first time in 25 years, potentially bringing them closer to small cars and hybrids that currently lag behind in fuel efficiency.
The BMW Motorrad Vision DC is an electric motorcycle concept
Zero-emission vehicle licensing is nothing new in California; The state is on the way to end most sales new cars with combustion engines in 2035. But this electric motorcycle mandate is also predicted to lead to a gradual increase in overall sales.
Under the proposed rules, more than 280,000 new electric or hydrogen motorcycles are expected to be sold in California by 2045. That's about eight times what's on the nation's roads, according to CalMatters.
Motorcycles make up less than 1% of all vehicle miles traveled in California, but they contribute “a large portion of the emissions,” CARB officials told CalMatters. Indeed, internal combustion motorcycles have long been characterized as more polluting than carsas they can easily lose the air-breathing goods.
Honda EV Fun concept
Harley-Davidson ran into trouble emissions-gear cheating ten years ago, it directly sells its customers “victory machines.” But it has seen the light in electricity, and motorcycle manufacturers such as Honda and BMW will join forces to convince the new generation to ride electric.
If the plan passes, one question mark is whether so-called three-wheeled “autocycles”—like this one from California-based Aptera—will be included in the sales target.