A motorized bicycle, motorbike, cyclemotor, or vélomoteur is a bicycle with an attached motor and transmission used either to power the vehicle unassisted, or to assist with pedaling. Since it always retains both pedals and a discrete connected drive for rider-powered propulsion, the motorized bicycle is in technical terms a true bicycle, albeit a power-assisted one. However, for purposes of governmental licensing and registration requirements, the type may be legally defined as a motor vehicle, motorcycle, moped, or a separate class of hybrid vehicle. Powered by a variety of engine types and designs, the motorized bicycle formed the prototype for what would later become the motorcycle.
Read more about Motorized Bicycle: Design and Usage, History, Current Trends, Legal Status of Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) Powered Bicycles, Legal Status of Electrically Powered Bicycles, Power Sources, Environmental Effects
Famous quotes containing the word bicycle:
“Consider a man riding a bicycle. Whoever he is, we can say three things about him. We know he got on the bicycle and started to move. We know that at some point he will stop and get off. Most important of all, we know that if at any point between the beginning and the end of his journey he stops moving and does not get off the bicycle he will fall off it. That is a metaphor for the journey through life of any living thing, and I think of any society of living things.”
—William Golding (b. 1911)