The Overhead Wire Daily: Wagons and Cargo Bikes
September 26, 2024
My family got me a collapsible wagon for my birthday a few years ago and it’s seriously one of my favorite urban living car free solutions ever. From an access standpoint, it also allows me to walk right up to the grocery store doors and lock it folded up to the rack just like a bike. And it doesn’t take much space in my closet or need a big garage.
It’s also just easier to carry things. It can be hard to hold both grocery bags without getting hand lacerations and bringing pumpkins home for Halloween is infinitely easier than strapping them onto the bike rack with bungee cords, hoping that a bounce doesn’t smash it into smithereens.
Apparently it also allows me to transport my daughter’s car seat as it is too heavy to carry to my friend’s house on the rare occasion when I do need to borrow their car. Just pop it in the wagon and go!
While not a wagon like mine, cargo bikes operate in a similar manner and can carry more payload. So it makes sense that in areas where there are more opportunities to do so such as London, cargo bikes are increasingly popular. London tuned its cameras to count them and found an increase of 73%, which is impressive. Even more so that they aren’t just for personal use but for replacing vans that often times run with small amounts of cargo.
After biking my daughter up a few hills with only an 8 speed gear box, I can see where electric assist will be a game changer for many parents and delivery people alike. Of course you wouldn’t be able to use a cargo bike or wagon everywhere, especially in auto oriented environments, and sometimes that truck really helps on a run to Home Depot from time to time, but for folks that don’t need a car or truck, easy and practical solutions abound.
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