Who remembers the first time they saw one of those electric scooters or bikes propped up against a bus stop in their city? Nowadays, you can’t walk down a city block without seeing rows of e-scooters, e-bikes, and even mopeds. Needless to say, the micro-mobility trend has not only caught on, but it’s here to stay.
The on-demand model took off as we saw companies like Lime and Bird jump onto the scene. This trend is both an awesome and fun innovation, but soon these companies ran into some problems working with local jurisdictions. Scooters were crowding sidewalks, left in streets, freeways, and even found floating in rivers. These “micro-vehicles” needed a home, so a new opportunity was born.
Lay Down Some Tracks with The GoTrax Traveler
The demand was clearly there, but the pay-as-you-go model had its fair set of problems. That’s when GoTrax realized there was an opportunity.
GoTrax is a relatively new company making strides in the micro-mobility space. They are most commonly known for making an awesome line of inexpensive e-scooters. Now they’re breaking into the e-bike market and the ReadWrite team was lucky enough to take their GoTrax Traveler for a spin. Here’s my review:
Unboxing the GoTrax Traveler
The team here at ReadWrite definitely knows a thing or two about technology — but when it comes to bike mechanics, several people on our team we’re as “green” as they come. Luckily, the GoTrax Traveler was a breeze to assemble.
The box comes with all the tools and parts you’ll need to put the bike together. The instruction manual is fairly straightforward, but take a few pointers to heart from our experience.
First, this is definitely a two-person job. The front wheel is attached towards the end of the assembly process, so you won’t be able to prop the bike up on its kickstand for assembly. We already keep a bike stand inside our office to encourage a healthy lifestyle — so we assembled the bike using that when needed.
When attaching the handlebars, make sure the bars are aligned with the front wheel before tightening down the handlebar. Again you’ll want your assistant mechanic to hold the front wheel in place as the handlebars are aligned and tightened.
Lastly, I had a little trouble fitting the front wheel disc break into the brake pad without causing some friction. After loosening the pad and a few parts of the brake mechanism, everything worked fine—time for the fun part.
GoTrax Traveler Specs
The GoTrax traveler is the newest e-bike model in their 2021 line as of today. The e-bike boasts a 31 mile per charge (31 miles using pedal assist and 20.5 on pure electric) and speeds up to 20mph. Additionally, the GoTrax website lists the following specs:
- 36v 10.4AH Battery
- 500W Motor
- Electronic display with 3 speeds low (8.7mph), medium (14.3 mph), and high (20mph)
- 29″ Air filled tires
- Size – 60.62″ x 9.45″ x 31.89″
- Weight – 58.5lbs (max rider weight – 265 lbs)
The battery can be easily detached from the frame for charging, which takes anywhere from 4-6 hours and can be locked to the frame to avoid any “sticky fingers.” The goal of my test ride was to test these specs to what’s advertised on the GOTRAX site.
But, of course, everyone in the office wanted to watch and then see how this bike compared with their bikes at home. Obviously, many factors make up these numbers, but I did my best to give our readership an idea of what to expect.
The Ride
We have had a ton of fun on these e-bikes.
Our main bike riders are about 6 ft. 160-180lbs and fit quite comfortably on the bike — but we have two women on the team and they like this size as well.
The seat is adjustable and the ride is more of a “cruiser” feel than a typical road bike. We all liked the bike on the fastest speed setting but can attest to the fact that the other speed settings are a great way to keep things in control.
If you are using pedal assist, use the lowest speed setting as the motor will quickly replace any effort you put into pedaling the bike.
The bike is quite powerful, the 500W motor can quickly get you up to the 20mph top speed quickly and the bike can climb uphill with ease. The ride is very smooth and really fun to ride around city streets, neighborhoods, and the thick tires even allow for some very light off-roading (this is probably not recommended, but we did it anyway).
The battery lasts long enough for several days/or even weeks of short trips and can easily be taken out for a full day of riding. The overall frame feels strong, and the bike should last a long time, assuming the electronics are taken care of. (I wouldn’t leave my bike out in the rain for long, though it might be fine.)
Final Thoughts
The bottom line is this bike is not only fun but a great option if you’re looking for a fair-priced electric bike. The GoTrax Traveler is currently retailing for $949.99 (at the time of writing this article), which includes a 30-day return policy and 3-5 day free shipping.
The ReadWrite team thoroughly enjoyed this e-bike, and given the 30-day return policy, we’d recommend taking a GoTrax Traveler out for a spin!
