These problems need to be solved urgently, and Shanghai promotes safety source control of electric bicycles
In 2023, the National Fire and Rescue Bureau received a total of 21,000 reports of electric bicycle fires - the number of fires caused by electric bicycles has increased year by year, and strengthening the control of the safety sources of electric bicycles has become a top priority.
Shanghai focuses on improving system design to implement policies. The revised "Shanghai Non-Motor Vehicle Safety Management Regulations" will be implemented from June 1, starting from production, sales, road use, and other aspects, and directly address the key points of electric bicycle safety.
However, at the specific implementation level, there are still some critical issues that need to be resolved urgently: there is a large gap in safe charging facilities in residential areas, illegal modification of vehicles is widespread, the quality of batteries for electric bicycles is uneven, and the recycling and scrapping system for old vehicles is not yet complete. wait.
Focusing on the potential safety hazards of electric bicycles, reporters conducted in-depth investigations to analyze the crux and explore solutions. Many interviewees pointed out that eliminating electric bicycle safety hazards and improving source governance efficiency is a systematic project involving top-level design, legal protection and implementation. Relevant departments must not only do a good job in management, but also implement guidance. safeguard measures and explore the formation of more social co-governance plans.
Among electric bicycle fire accidents, cases caused by illegal parking and charging are not uncommon. Data shows that more than 90% of casualties caused by electric bicycle fires are caused by parking in corridors, indoors and other places. How to regulate the parking and safe charging of a large number of electric bicycles is not only an important part of promoting the safety source management of electric bicycles, but also a difficulty that has long troubled community managers and law enforcement departments.
Regarding illegal parking and charging of electric bicycles, the Fire Law and the "Shanghai Residential Property Management Regulations" have prohibitive regulations and penalties, but actual implementation faces many obstacles: some property personnel did not stop illegal parking and charging in time. , or failed to report to relevant departments in a timely manner and assist in handling; some communities and fire fighters also face the dilemma of "difficulty in providing evidence and no punishment". Some law enforcement officials said that the current law enforcement is still mainly based on warnings, and for residents in old communities, they often "cannot be punished and cannot be punished."
According to the unified deployment of the national special team to rectify the entire chain of electric bicycle safety hazards, Shanghai fire protection, public security and other departments have carried out centralized inspections to discourage and educate behaviors such as "flying cable" charging
In view of the practical difficulties in management, evidence and punishment, the newly revised "Regulations" further refines the prohibitive provisions, clarifies the regulatory subjects and legal consequences, and provides institutional guarantees for the implementation of law enforcement. The "Regulations" stipulate that electric bicycles and their batteries are not allowed to be parked or charged in the following areas, including the first-floor foyer of the building, shared walkways, stairwells, corridors and other common areas, evacuation passages, safety exits, fire truck passages and the impacts on both sides Traffic areas, indoor areas in densely populated places, indoor areas in residential buildings, etc. For illegal parking and charging behaviors in different places, the "Regulations" also clarify the corresponding management entities and the basis for punishment.
Behind the problems, the difficulties of parking and charging electric bicycles have become increasingly prominent. Some community managers admitted frankly that if there are not sufficient and convenient parking and charging facilities, "various violations will soon return" once the rectification actions are over.
During the governance process, more grassroots workers feel that "blocking" is a temporary solution, while "draining" is the fundamental strategy. Duan Guofeng, Secretary of the Party Branch of Lian'an Residential Area, Beicai Town, Pudong New Area, was deeply touched: During a previous visit to the community, he found that there were more than 300 electric bicycles with limited rechargeable facilities, and some residents could only rely on "flying wires" or charging at home. In the past two years, several residential areas in Lian'an have successively added or renovated centralized charging stations for electric bicycles, and the original frequent illegal charging phenomenon has been significantly improved.
How to find systematic solutions instead of just relying on punitive measures? Shanghai is exploring the use of "smart governance" to improve supervision and services. The reporter learned from interviews that some communities are continuing to promote prevention and management through the installation of "technical civil defense" measures such as smart elevators, smart charging piles, and early warning platforms. In old communities with limited space, smart charging and swapping cabinets with small size and high safety provide new ideas for solving problems.
Grassroots staff believe that many car owners do not pay enough attention to the safety of electric bicycle batteries, and it is necessary to continue to improve residents' safety awareness and self-prevention and self-rescue capabilities through warning education and regular publicity. "We found that some car owners did not pay enough attention to the safety of electric bicycle batteries, so we organized building team leaders and volunteers to strengthen warning education and regular publicity. After saying more, residents' safety awareness and self-prevention and self-rescue abilities have indeed improved. Not only can I not pull the strings myself, I will also report it through residents’ WeChat groups when I see this kind of situation.” Duan Guofeng said.
The fire hazard of electric bicycles should not only be blocked "outside the building", but also "outside the market". According to a report from the Shanghai Fire Rescue Department, most of the electric bicycles that caught fire had batteries installed and replaced, and the body structure was changed. When the vehicle leaves the factory, the overall product and battery are quality guaranteed, and the problems mainly lie in the refurbishment, modification and other aspects.
Shanghai police have recently investigated and dealt with a number of vehicle sales outlets that provide modification services. In the case investigated by the Baoshan police, the shop owner Niu would modify the 48V battery installed in the original vehicle into a 60V or 72V battery according to the buyer's needs, and then sell the "customized vehicle" to the outside world. Currently, the criminal suspect Niu and two others have been criminally detained on suspicion of producing and selling counterfeit and inferior products.
In addition to replacing excessive batteries, some stores will help car owners lift speed restrictions. According to national standards, the speed limit for electric bicycles is 25 kilometers per hour, but through decoding, the top speed can be increased to about 60 kilometers per hour. The reporter found that this type of decoder is not difficult to find on e-commerce platforms, and the cheapest one only costs more than ten yuan.
Some stores also provide "license first and then modification" service. The reporter learned that in the cases investigated by the police, some sales staff told consumers that as long as they buy an electric bicycle, they can provide free services such as modification and removal of speed limiting devices and replacement of high-power batteries, and then ask consumers to go to the vehicle management office to get the license plate first. , and then modify it after returning.
Relevant laws and regulations have long made it clear that modifying electric bicycles is illegal, and modifying vehicles is full of hidden dangers. Why are some people still keen on doing this? Reporters interviewed found that some consumers have become "loyal fans" of modified electric bicycles in order to break through speed limits and pursue high battery life. In order to gain profits, some stores do not hesitate to take risks to cater to consumers' modification needs, and some use inferior or refurbished components.
At the same time, greater regulatory difficulty and lower illegal costs have also become obstacles to curbing illegal modifications. A front-line traffic policeman told reporters that when enforcing the law on the road, they mainly focus on the structural changes in the appearance of electric bicycles and the addition of accessories. As for behaviors such as modifying excessive batteries and lifting speed limits, it is difficult for the police to identify and identify them on the spot. “There are still some illegal behaviors. The car owner removed the additional equipment in front of you, but then put it back two days later."
There are obstacles in terminal management, and upstream service providers who trace illegal modifications also face challenges. “Recently, with the increase in inspections and law enforcement, some shops have begun to provide modification services only to regular customers, and some people have changed to taking orders online and modifying them at night, which greatly increases the randomness and concealment of illegal crimes, and obtains clues and fixed evidence. It’s getting more and more difficult.” A market supervisor said that compared with the benefits from modified vehicles, the cost of being investigated and punished is not high, which has led to some shops committing crimes.
This phenomenon has received the attention of the legislative branch. The revised "Regulations" clearly prohibit the installation and modification of various types of non-motor vehicles, as well as the sale of assembled, installed and modified non-motor vehicles. In addition, the "Regulations" increase the penalties for illegal modification of commercial activities. "Those who engage in business activities of assembling, retrofitting or modifying non-motor vehicles or selling assembled, retrofitted or modified non-motor vehicles" will be punished by the original "A fine of not less than 2,000 yuan but not more than 20,000 yuan" was changed to "a fine of not less than 5,000 yuan but not more than 50,000 yuan".
Only the combination of legislation and law enforcement can truly curb the disorderly behavior of illegal modifications in the market. "With increased supervision and penalties on sales channels, merchants will surely weigh their gains and losses and not continue to ignore relevant regulations and do their own thing." Industry insiders suggest that market supervision departments should form a regular and normalized supervision mechanism for electric bicycle sales points and repair points. , Strict product quality inspection. At the same time, we will strengthen coordinated law enforcement with traffic police and other departments, share clues and information, and form a joint force in supervision. In addition, the public can also be encouraged to report illegal modifications discovered and given appropriate rewards to improve the effectiveness of social governance.
Chongming Fire Rescue Department inspects the underground parking garage
The Jiading Branch of Shanghai Public Security Bureau traced the source of several recent electric bicycle fire accidents and found that battery cell failure was an important cause of the disaster. Industry insiders also pointed out that ensuring battery quality is the top priority in managing the safety sources of electric bicycles.
Due to their light weight and high energy, lithium batteries have become a general trend in recent years to replace lead-acid batteries. According to iResearch's "2023 China Two-Wheeled Electric Vehicle Industry White Paper", the penetration rate of lithium-ion two-wheeled vehicles was 12.7% in 2018 and increased to 25% in 2022. Research organization EVTank predicts that by 2025, the penetration rate of lithium-ion electric bicycles will reach 56.4%.
However, some inferior lithium batteries have flowed into the market, causing safety hazards from the source. "The battery may become a fire source or an important combustion accelerant after a fire. Its own safety and protection measures cannot be ignored." Zhou Mingchuan, deputy captain of the Songjiang detachment of the Shanghai Fire Rescue Corps, said that because of the structure and chemical system of the lithium battery itself, It is unstable and is more likely to cause safety accidents such as fires and explosions when encountering collisions, extrusions, overcharges, short circuits, etc.
Inferior batteries with substandard quality are like time bombs wandering around, threatening urban security. According to the Shanghai Public Security Department, compared with compliant lithium batteries produced by regular manufacturers, inferior lithium batteries are only one-half or even one-third of the price, and often attract consumers who need to modify electric bicycles with their excessively large capacity. Some small workshops specialize in recycling scrapped batteries for reprocessing and selling. However, the production technology and quality are not up to par, and the hidden dangers are even more serious.
Since the beginning of this year, the Shanghai Public Security Bureau, in conjunction with market supervision and other departments, has continued to strengthen the investigation of counterfeit and shoddy cases in the production and sales of core components such as electric bicycle batteries and chargers, and imposed severe and severe penalties in an effort to cut off the chain of illegal production and sales networks. It is reported that relevant departments conducted three joint inspections of more than 500 electric bicycle sales doors in the city and found many illegal clues about the production and sale of fake and inferior electric bicycles. Among them, if the production or sales amount reaches more than 50,000 yuan and is suspected of producing and selling counterfeit and inferior products, the public security economic investigation department will carry out criminal crackdowns. A total of nearly 30 cases of illegal production and sales of counterfeit and inferior electric bicycles have been detected, and more than 1,000 counterfeit and inferior bicycles have been seized. vehicles, with the amount involved amounting to more than 28 million yuan.
The crux of the problem of inferior batteries is related to the long-term lack of mandatory national standards for lithium batteries for electric bicycles. At present, the production standards for lithium batteries for electric bicycles are based on the "National Standard for Lithium-ion Batteries for Electric Bicycles" implemented in 2019. According to Zhou Mingchuan, this is only a national recommended standard, not a mandatory standard. Enterprises may or may not implement it. "The lack of mandatory national standards gives inferior batteries more room to survive. When problems occur, it is difficult to trace the responsibility of the production company."
The good news is that this gap will be filled. Recently, the mandatory national standard "Safety Technical Specifications for Lithium-Ion Batteries for Electric Bicycles" was officially released and will be officially implemented on November 1 this year. In addition to regulating the design, production and sales of lithium-ion battery products for electric bicycles, the specification also requires manufacturers to mark the "safe service life" on the battery pack to remind users to eliminate old batteries when they expire and reduce the potential risks caused by old batteries. Security risks to protect users’ lives and property.
How to deal with old vehicles and batteries is another shortcoming that needs to be made up for. At present, my country has no mandatory scrapping regulations for non-motor vehicles, and the power battery recycling system is not perfect. "Just like motor vehicles, all electric vehicles and drivers under standardized management should be included in the management perspective, a full chain and full life cycle management system for electric bicycle products should be established, and riding behavior should be standardized." said the aforementioned traffic police.
In this regard, industry insiders suggest that the formulation of relevant policies and regulations should be accelerated to clarify the scrapping and recycling standards and processes of vehicles and batteries, and then promote the coded traceability management of electric bicycles and collect information on the entire process from product certification, production, sales, registration to recycling. , using digital platforms to achieve multi-departmental collaborative supervision.
