<p> The Storm eBike - An Inexpensive Answer to Gridlock?</p><p>Dan Tynan</p><p>Stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic again? Tired of being crammed like cattle into a subway car? </p><p>An Indiegogo Kickstarter campaign launching Monday may help change that. The Storm eBike is a basic two-wheeler with a battery-powered motor that could make your daily commute a breeze.</p><p>“It’s the Tesla of bicycles,” says company co-founder Storm Sonders (yes, that’s his real name). But the Storm eBike doesn’t come with a Tesla-like price. At an introductory price of $499, it lives at the low end of the range for electric bikes, which can cost $3,000 or more.</p><p>(That introductory offer will expire in a few days; the expected retail price is closer to $1300.)</p><p>I got to take one for a short spin outside Yahoo’s San Francisco offices.</p><p>Unlike traditional electric-assist bikes, which require you to pedal first before the motor kicks in, the Storm is fully electric. A gentle tap of my thumb on the accelerator, and I was hitting the max speed of 20 mph in less than 50 yards. Hydraulic disc brakes brought it to a swift stop.</p><p>While the eBike’s 350-watt motor still doesn’t have enough oomph to conquer San Francisco’s steep hills without a pedal-powered assist, it’s a whiz on city streets as well as the twisty canyon roads of Malibu, where the company is based, says Sonders. Superfat 4.6-inch tires are designed to let you ride on the beach or in the snow as well as on pavement, he adds.</p><p>If you run out of juice or need to climb a hill, you can always pedal, though hauling the single-gear, 45-pound bike up a grade by yourself will definitely earn you your fitness points for the week.</p><p>According to the company, the eBike will run for 90 minutes or 30 to 50 miles on a charge, and it recharges in a standard 120-volt outlet in about 90 minutes. The battery is removable, so you can bring it inside to charge and take it with you when the bike stays locked outside.</p><p>The Storm eBike should be available to the public sometime in June. But Storm is not the only company trying to reinvent the two-wheeler.In December, two San Francisco entrepreneurs unveiled their own prototype “Tesla of bikes,” the Bolt. There’s also the $949 Copenhagen Wheel, currently available for preorder, which can transform any bike into an eBike. Note: This article as updated to more accurately reflect the eBike's actual retail price.</p>