Linda de Ridder (37) from Heerhugowaard always has a headwind these days: with her new electric hand bike she barely makes progress. When she asks the municipality for a faster model, she is told that a new European law has lowered the maximum speed for hand bikes, but that is slightly different. A reconstruction.
Linda suffers from MS and has to go to the hospital every month for IV treatment. That treatment makes her very drowsy. “Sometimes I’m tired for days afterwards,” she says. Because driving afterwards is too dangerous, she makes the journey with her electric hand bike, which she connects to her wheelchair. She receives this Wmo provision through the municipality of Dijk en Waard.
Linda’s previous hand bike reached a speed of about 25 kilometers per hour. “But that chair was much too narrow and was not comfortable,” she explains. She therefore receives a new, but completely different model from the municipality. With a big disadvantage: the new one only reaches a maximum speed of 15 km/h. The handcycle appears to be limited by the manufacturer. “My ten-year-old daughter can now jog next to me. Cyclists and skaters fly past me. If I had known this in advance, I would never have agreed to this.”
Finger to Brussels
She emails her Wmo consultant and asks for clarification. He explains that there has been contact with Medipoint, the supplier of the handbikes. The finger is pointed at Brussels. “The new European legislation and regulations stipulate that a hand bike may not exceed 15 km/h. All suppliers must adhere to this in the future”, can be read in the email exchange.
The so-called printed circuit boards, which determine the speed of an E-bike or hand bike, are therefore no longer made, according to Medipoint. “Just connecting to the computer to increase the speed is therefore no longer possible,” writes the Wmo consultant.
“As a council member, I was sometimes told that something was not possible or allowed in Brussels, but it later turned out that this was not the case at all”
She is offered two alternative models by Medipoint, which, with a maximum speed of 20 km/h, go faster than they should actually be. Linda thinks it’s a strange story and googles herself on the internet, but finds no information about the new law.
NH News also scours the web, but does not become much wiser than Linda. We decide to approach the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management. There the answer is short but powerful: “Each European country has its own traffic rules. There is no law that would state this.”
Pretext or ignorance?
A spokesperson for the European Commission dives into it for us, but comes up with the same answer: “That new law does not exist at all”, says spokesperson Anna Wartberger of Mobility and Transport.
We then knock on the door of the European Parliament and come into contact with MEP Mohammed Chahim (PvdA). From 2006 to 2019 he was a councilor for the municipality of Helmond. Linda’s situation sounds all too familiar to him. “As a council member, I was sometimes told that something was not possible or allowed in Brussels. Upon further investigation, this turned out not to be the case at all.”
Whether that was actively used to thwart business, or whether it is pure ignorance on the part of administrators, he wants to leave open.
Text continues after Read also:
In the meantime, the municipality of Dijk en Waard has also responded. It would not be a European law, but a standard. A so-called NEN-EN standard. This contains agreements that market parties voluntarily make among themselves about the quality and safety of their products, services and processes.
Norm breaks law
“As of 2019, the standard for the target speed of 20 km/h has been reduced to approximately 15 km/h. At the end of 2022, this standard was adjusted again and became 20 km/h. The provision of the lady was manufactured during that period and therefore has the limit “, is the statement of a spokesman.
When we inquire with the police, it turns out that this is not correct within the Dutch traffic rules. “As long as the hand bike cannot go faster than 25 km/h, it is legally regarded as an (electric) bicycle. In that case, the same traffic rules apply as for a bicycle. As soon as they can go faster, they are legally regarded as a moped.”
“Otherwise I’ll have that thing performed myself”
With an e-bike, the pedal assistance stops at 25 km/h. That is different from the permitted speed. However, due to the EU standard, suppliers are free to limit the maximum speed themselves. “Almost all manufacturers choose to stay below the limit of 25 kilometers,” the police respond.
Linda is now well done with it. “I don’t just use the handbike for the hospital, but also for everyday things such as shopping. Despite my physical disability, I just have to be able to move, otherwise I’ll have that thing tuned up myself,” she reacts defiantly.
Redeeming word
But then the phone rings. It is the director of Medipoint, René Martens. He is surprised at his company’s previous reactions. “I don’t know how the story of that European law got into the world. Very annoying and irritating,” he says apologetically. “We will contact the lady and we will solve it for her.”
Linda’s prayers are answered: a week later, Medipoint picked up her hand bike and fitted it with a different circuit board. Two days later everything runs like a charm again, she happily announces. “Without touching it, I now reach a speed of almost 25 kilometers. So there is no need to step up!”