“In the chaotic ecosystem of Chinese roadways, the electric bike fits in right where the infernal moped might have once hoped to go, as a stepping stone for growing families or a low-cost option for commuters.
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For anyone who has not been to China, it is easy to lose sight of just how big a deal this is: China has twenty-five million cars, but it has four times as many e-bikes.” ~ Evan Osnos, “The Turtle King Revolution”, Letter from China, The New Yorker
Taken on Lanxi Road (兰溪路)
March 2010
Another deeply meaningful capture, S-AT.
Personally, I think the urban citizens carry themselves with a kind of dignity, the sort I observed when I was in Shanghai last because, well, in SHA there were just more opportunities to just lay back and take it all in. I love this snap because it shows precisely the sort of dignity I’m talking about: the need to get from A to B and going about life’s daily tasks in the process. It’s a silent moment, but it says a whole lot…at least to me it does. It’s noble. And that bauble is also kinda cool, don’t you think?
Yeah, these things are everywhere down here too. I have a colleague who calls them “silent killers’ because you can’t here them coming and the drivers are often young people with no driving training or knowledge of traffic laws!
When I first came to China I bought an electric cycle, actually I’ve bought two. Both were stolen so I learned to embrace to the public bus system!
Nice catch… it’s the moment that strikes me… lost in her world. Love the cycle gloves!
You’ve captured a personal moment here… and for an outsider, a young fashionable girl on an electric bike is not a common site
Btw, love the slightly desaturated colors here. The composition and colors combo makes it feel like a romantic Doisneau shot.
Danny! I wish e-bike were more popular in Singapore! I know lots of folks are going green by riding to work, but I imagine you’d arrive at work drenched in sweat. Ha.