undefined | Better HN

0 pointsloeg3y ago0 comments

Unfortunately the big front-loaded cargo bikes are, well, big. Almost as long as a car, if not as wide. You need to park them somewhere and they're definitely too big and heavy to carry up any stairs. They're also expensive, like mid 4 figures USD. This starts to look like a similar problem to car ownership and parking. (I say this all as an avid cyclist -- my household has four bikes and one car.) Rentals seem like a good fit for some users so I'm happy to see someone trying it as a business model.

0 comments

14 comments · 5 top-level

lock-the-spock3y ago· 8 in thread

I own a bike with a big box in the front and parking has absolutely not been an issue for me. In the last six months I rode > 2600km in and around one of the densest European cities and parked in many different places. I have yet to find a place where I cannot park the bike . You can use regular car parking, but you will always find a dead corner, bike rack, big sidewalk, etc where you can leave the bike. And to be clear, I don't block the sidewalks or otherwise selfishly get in the way of other city dwellers.

My bike is an urban arrow, so one of the bigger two wheelers. ~7500€ new with all possible add-ons and a €150 annual insurance that covers the bike in full if ever stolen or damaged in an accident, so I also feel safe parking in rough areas with it.

bloke_zero3y ago

Not easy at home in London. Our flat would not allow a cargo bike (1st floor) and there is no where outside to lock it safe and dry.

60,000 people on a 4 year waiting list for on street bike parking:

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/london-cyclists-bike-...

Xylakant3y ago

In your case, a Tern HSD/GSD longtail may be a better option. It’s not quite as convenient as a long John, but much more compact and parks upright, so it fits even a small apartment.

Transport capacity is still great and the bigger version can seat two passengers, but the kids need to be old enough to sit and hold on themselves.

ianleighton3y ago

I got an e-Muli, which is a sorta “short john” but where the front basket folds and handlebars pivot 90° so parking it is a bit more slim, more or less the footprint of a normal bike. It’s amazing — a little heavy so probably not luggable up stairs, but small enough when basket is folded that I prefer it even on errands where I don’t need the cargo space, just cause it’s electric (nice to throw a backpack in the front basket and close it, too. A little pricey since it’s made in Germany, but absolutely worth it: https://muli-cycles.de/en

ClumsyPilot3y ago

London core requires a special solution -> bikes with folding handlebar stem, folding pedals, possibly a longtail if you need to transport two kids.

All of this stuff exists but the bike industry can't put 2 and 2 together.

Here is a link to a folding handlebar stem that is sometimes in stock: https://flatbike.com/product/thinstem/

pg3143y ago

I cannot speak for the safe part, but here in Belgium plenty of people leave their Urban Arrows outside (with a rain cover).

Moldoteck3y ago

ive seen recently a new model of cargo bike that can be folded and it takes much less space. Myabe this helps

loegOP3y ago

Glad to hear it. The biggest barrier for me is parking it at home. I don't have an indoor space big enough for a cargo bike and don't want to leave a $8-10,000 bike exposed to the elements and thieves (regardless of insurance).

stonogo3y ago

A coworker of mine has a cargo bike from a company called Tern. I thought that is was the GSD but looking at their website it's different than the one he rides. Nevertheless, a neat feature is you can kick the bike backwards onto its own cargo rack, and the bike stands on its own vertically. He rides it to work and it fits in his comically small office; the footprint is about the same as a vertical filing cabinet. I'm told several of the newer cargo bikes have this feature.

1 more reply

airza3y ago· 1 in thread

A bakfiets is nowhere near the size of a car. Come on now.

estebank3y ago

I feel it is useful to provide actual numbers on conversations like this.

On some brand I quickly googled[1], the bounding box that covers all of their models for electric bakfiet's size is 253cm x 95cm (with no individual bike being both that long and wide). Comparing them with a Fiat 500 and a RAM truck[2] (just for kicks), that bounding box is 1 meter shorter in both dimensions than the Fiat. And their classic model is 228cm x 63cm.

[1]: https://www.bakfiets.com/bestanden/documenten/618-22bakfiets...

[2]: https://www.carsized.com/en/cars/compare/abarth-500-2008-3-d...

dublinben3y ago

Long tail cargo bikes like the Tern GSD avoid those issues of the bakfiets style ‘wheelbarrow’ bikes. They’ll take two passengers, and there’s plenty of less expensive options as well.

Mashimo3y ago

They are quite large, but not any where near as long or wide as a car.

velocity233y ago

I agree, I think they're an interim solution for not-very-bike-safe societies. (And bike-safe societies for people who are actually carrying cargo and have to use a big vehicle one way or another).

I've read that in the Netherlands, they aren't as common as you'd expect, because kids just ride their own bikes almost as soon as they're able to walk, because school, sport etc is nearby and on a safe separated bike path network. While younger babies are carried in those little seats that mount on the handlebars or racks of regular bikes.

I don't think ability to be carried up stairs easily is a good criteria for the practicality of any bike though, or it rules out many ebikes too. Just need secure parking at the ground level.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse