Survivors and newcomers are still churning out EV motorcycles, though. They include\u00a0Zero Motorcycles<\/a>, Lightning Motorcycle<\/a> and Alta Motors<\/a> in the U.S., Energica Motor<\/a> in Italy and China\u2019s Evoke Motorcycles<\/a>. All are helping to\u00a0awaken market demand.\u00a0According to forecasts from ID Tech Ex, the market for smaller electric vehicles, including motorcycles, will comprise about 5 percent of overall EV sales, generating\u00a0some $35 billion annually by 2027.<\/p>\n Zero Motorcycles CTO Abe Askenazi.<\/em><\/p>\n TechCrunch recently caught up with Zero Motorcycles CTO Abe Askenazi, who has been in the motorcycle industry for about two decades, to get his take on what could make electric motorcycles the first choice for riders.<\/p>\n Askenazi said right now, a lot of Zero Motorcycles\u2019 customers buy the company\u2019s EV bikes alongside market-leading V-twins and V-4s. To him, that\u00a0indicates Zero\u2019s bikes perform at the same or better levels as riders\u2019 long-held favorites.<\/p>\n Besides that, he said, electric bikes are quiet, so riders can hear what\u2019s happening around them, and won\u2019t disturb the peace, which their neighbors appreciate. That quietude is one reason police departments buy Zero Motorcycles for their fleets. They can ride at any hour, and approach suspects stealthily if they drive electric.<\/p>\n Of course,\u00a0electricity costs less than gas\u00a0most of the world over. That\u2019s appealing to a certain set of riders \u2014 so is the ability to power your bike with solar or wind-generated electricity for those most eco-minded motorcycle enthusiasts.<\/p>\n Zero Motorcycles\u2019 dual-sport electric, the Zero DS.<\/em><\/p>\n Zero\u2019s today makes everything from lightweight \u201chot rods\u201d to sporty off-road models that\u00a0cost from $8,495 to $15,995. Appreciated for\u00a0their acceleration, speed, control and easy-to-read instruments, in the past the bikes drew\u00a0complaints around range. The company has worked hard to\u00a0improve its\u00a0battery tech, however, and some bikes in Zero\u2019s 2017\u00a0lineup\u00a0promise 200 miles per charge. That compares to e-motorcycles\u00a0with a\u00a040-mile range\u00a0made by Zero just a few years ago.<\/p>\n \u201cOptimization of chemistry has gotten us here. The beautiful thing is that batteries are plug-and-play.\u00a0When that battery comes that will give you 1,000 miles, we\u2019ll be able to use it,\u201d the CTO said. \u201cWhere the industry is going though is not so much a bigger battery to go further between charges, but faster charging so you can go grocery shopping, plug it in, come back and then you\u2019re ready to go again.\u201d<\/p>\n Over time,\u00a0batteries will take up less weight and space on e-motorcycles, beyond what we can even envision today, the CTO said. That will\u00a0leave room for cargo and other components, potentially. Already, Zero Motorcycles S and DS bikes\u00a0give riders a large storage space behind the batteries. \u201cYou gain a lot of practicality with this bike,\u201d Askenazi said. Lighter-weight and stronger materials will also transform design, he predicts.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.rsoftsolution.com\/blog\/wp-content\/plugins\/RSSPoster_PRO\/cache\/4e0de_screen-shot-2017-03-23-at-14-04-54.png?resize=640%2C348&ssl=1\")
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