By A.K. Streeter / Source: TreeHugger

Here at TreeHugger we’ve been hearing about and advocating the advent of the e-bike revolution for a number of years. Just as (supposedly) the revolution won’t be televised, it also isn’t exactly punctual.

With the succesful fund-raising campaign of the cheap (and possibly vapor-ish) $500 Storm e-bike however, once again the cries of “e-bike revolution” can be heard echoing around the Internet mediasphere.

And then here comes Ford Motor Company, saying all the right gee-whizzy things as it displays its gee-whiz e-bikes and mobility ideas at the Barcelona Mobile World conference.

MoDe:Me and MoDe:Pro are the names of the bikes that Ford showed as part of its “Handle on Mobility” experiment. The fact that they used the word experiment probably gives you pause, and it should.

The bikes are very sweet: they are pedal-assist folding electric bikes with 200-watt motors and 9-amp-hour batteries that can go up to 25 kilometers per hour (15.5 mph), which is sufficient yet not optimum for city biking. The MoDe:Me is actually a Dahon-designed bike, while the more heavy-duty MoDe:Pro is currently designed by Ford.

The MoDe:Me folds sufficiently to fit in Ford vehicles, the company said. (Removing and reattaching the pedals is required, however, which seems a big drawback to everyday riding).

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