SHENZHEN police are planning to follow Guangzhou’s example by banning the sale of electric bikes amid the growing number of them found on the streets and because of accidents related to them.

    The city has around 500,000 electric bikes, approximately 80 percent of which fail to meet national standards, which require them to have a maximum speed of 20 km/h and weigh less than 40 kg, according to a Daily Sunshine report yesterday. Some sellers have refitted the vehicles to satisfy the needs of drivers. Most electric bikes can reach 40 or even 50 km/h, police said.

    Police said their main concerns with the bikes are safety. They also worry about enforcement of traffic laws. These riders have never received any special training or tests, so there’s a lot of uncertainty over their driving abilities.

    Many electric bikes move very fast on roads, running through red lights and in the opposite direction of traffic. Some even drive on expressways alongside cars. The police consider this extremely dangerous.

    Shenzhen started to restrict electric bikes that fail to meet national standard on some roads and during some time periods in 2009.

    By the end of September this year, Shenzhen police had impounded 290,000 illegal electric bikes and motorcycles. In 2013, 214 people were killed in accidents involving electric bikes and 60 percent of them were passengers. In the first nine months this year, 39 people were killed in 386 e-bike-related accidents. Most of the accidents happened in Longgang District, Bao’an District and the city’s new areas.

    Shenzhen has gradually started enforcing its restriction of electric bikes on roads.(Han Ximin)