The Swedish Government has presented a budget for 2018 that includes a 25% subsidy for all e-bike sales until 2020. This is a spectacular success for the development of e-bike sales in Sweden, which is now the benchmark for all European countries to follow. And it all comes down to the advocacy work of cyclists’ association Cykelfrämjandet.

For the years 2018, 2019 and 2020 the budget is 350 million SEK (€35 million) each year. In total the money put aside is 1050 million SEK (€105 million). Everyone (individuals not companies) who buys an ebike from today and until the end of 2020 gets a discount of 25% of the price up to 10 000 SEK (€1000) per bike. The premium is valid retroactively from the 20th of September and will be paid starting 1st January 2018. You have to be above 15 years of age and can only buy one bike per person and year.

President of Cykelfrämjandet Lars Strömgren said “This is a success for Sweden and European collaboration. The elcykelpremie would never have been introduced without the work of Cykelfrämjandet. And that would not have been possible without the collaboration between ECF member organisations and the skills and that we have acquired through the Leadership Programme. The support we have had from the Cycling Industry Club grants made this possible.”

Cykelfrämjandet has been a three-year participant in ECF’s Leadership Programme which is funded by company donations to the ECF Cycling Industry Club. High potential cyclists’ associations get funds, support and training to transform their national campaigning to a professional level. In Sweden the industry now sees a €100 million return for just €60,000 grants to Cykelfrämjandet, and that has been repeated in other countries like Italy.

Cykelfrämjandet has been inspired by fellow ECF member Syklistenes Landsforening, as Oslo had conducted a similar scheme on e-bike subsidies in 2016, and by ECF’s ground breaking studies into bicycle and e-bike subsidies Electromobility for all: Financial incentives for e-cycling.

Lars Strömgren said “Cykelfrämjandet has done its part, now it’s up to the cycling industry to deliver all the e-bikes! Thank you to the ECF community for helping us at Cykelfrämjandet to deliver this great success, now we are ready to share our results and get this repeated across Europe.”

How it happened

Cykelfrämjandet originally proposed a plan for e-bike subsidies in April 2016, in a meeting with Mr Per Bolund, Minister for Financial Markets and Consumer Affairs and Deputy Minister of Finance. The idea was welcomed at the time, but was not incorporated in the budget until this year, when necessary surplus was available, making it possible to revisit Cykelfrämjandet’s proposal.

More than a year after the initial meeting, and after extensive advocacy work by Cykelfrämjandet in the Swedish media and to rally political support, the government incorporated the e-bike subsidy proposal in the budget of 2018. More on the story here [In Swedish].