"Being out in the open air also gives us a chance to stop and say hello to people we recognize and to meet our neighbors, which we rarely did before. “We don’t belong in silo’d cars driving around our neighborhoods,” Arleigh Greenwald, a bike mechanic and the creator of the online community resource Cargo Bike Life, told me in an email. "

I can't second this enough!
And don't think too hard about buying one, my entry point to ebikes was a $500 Walmart special (Concord Commutr) which is still being used in our family.

I love my e-bike! In the summer I smell fresh cut grass and flowers (which I don’t notice in the car on the same route). I don’t stress about walking from the far parking lot to work or really wait for traffic lights. Riding my bike feels like freedom and joy embodied - and I don’t even get sweaty! I usually arrive at my destination in a better mood than if I drove (unless it’s raining…)

Was reminiscent of one of my favorite quotes re this stuff - also helpful when people complain about cyclists "disregarding traffic laws":

Cyclists simply know more about how the streets work than drivers do in the same way that subway rats are more attuned to the workings of the transit system than the typical straphanger.

From this great manifesto: The Ethics of Breaking Traffic Laws

We just went big and ordered a couple Salsa Confluences here - we've both been big bikers before, but mostly in flat suburban areas in the south. So we haven't ridden much in hilly Olympia, and the Olympic peninsula is massive. We're excited to have pedal assist for the hills and peninsula rides so we can explore further. And I'm excited to make cycling my #1 mode of transport!