Nearly 300,000 electric bicycles have been sold in Japan in the past 12 months, and opting for one means never again paying for gas or parking tickets — and no more dreaded and impoverishing shaken vehicle-inspection tests.

Overseas, less than 100,000 electric bikes are sold in the United States each year, and they sell in small numbers in Western Europe — held back by their unfashionable image as a “ladies’ bike.” But they have gained a solid foothold in India, and in China, the biggest market of all, there are sales of over 10 million electrical bicycles a year, some selling for as little as 30,000JPY.