Welcome to Escape Collective. Please select your language.
Please note that this is an automated translation and it will not be perfect. All articles have been written in English and if anything appears to not make sense, please double check in English.
It’ll come as no surprise to much of our audience that I’m a massive fan of e-cargo bikes. While there are many people who believe e-bikes will be a big part of the solution for getting folks out of their fossil fuel-burning automobiles, I’ve long held the opinion that utility bikes are only as useful as what they can carry. E-bikes may very well be a great way for people to move themselves around, but if they don’t feel like they can bring their stuff with them, will people actually adopt them en masse?
E-cargo bikes, on the other hand, let you carry all sorts of stuff – be it people or parcels – and once again, this year’s Eurobike trade show was practically bursting at the seams with proven ideas and innovative new concepts in the cargo realm.
I’ve got my pick in mind, but which one would you put in your garage?
Want some more Eurobike coverage? You can find the entirety of our coverage from this year’s show right here, and as much as this might be hard to believe, we’ve still got some more to share with you.
Tern has revamped its HSD. Think of it as a shorter GSD for those who only ever need to carry one passenger.More polished silver bikes, please!Tern invested a lot of effort to make the revamped HSD frame super stiff so loads stay stable as you ride. It’s a characteristic that I think too many cargo bike brands ignore.The suspension fork should go a long way toward enhancing the stability of those little wheels.Need to keep your groceries cold? Tern’s new soft-sided insulated cooler fits perfectly on the front rack so your ice cream doesn’t turn into a soupy mess by the time you get home.The optional front cargo rack has fittings on the back for other accessories like a bottle cage. Tern’s Andros stem is also on hand, folding down with the flick of a lever so you can load your HSD into the back of many SUVs or vans.The latest Bosch mid-drive motor systems are fully integrated into the Tern HSD frame. Note the highly adjustable handlebar, too.The charge port is conveniently located right up top.Belt or chain drive? The frame allows for either one.Never underestimate the value of a good kickstand on a cargo bike.Ca Go is an offshoot brand of cargo bikesfrom Franc Arnold, the founder of Ergon. The new CS platform certainly looks unusual with its triple-decker format, but there’s quite a bit of clever thought incorporated here.Ca Go has designed the CS around the common eurocrate container dimensions. The lower platform is where you’d put the heavier bits, and Ca Go says the bike actually rides better with weight down there.Need to carry bigger stuff? Ca Go has another platform with a lot more surface area for larger parcels. It’d be a little unwieldy for sure, but I’m wondering if I might be able to stick a full-sized bike box up there.Ca Go has designed the CS to be a versatile cargo platform with lots of add-ons and interchangeable parts to suit your particular needs. None of them are designed to carry passengers, though.Need to keep your stuff dry? One option is a weather-resistant cover for the lower cargo area.The front rack is a burly-looking hunk of aluminum.Ca Go is debuting the CS in three different basic builds to start, one with a conventional rear derailleur and the other two with internally geared rear hubs.The built-in wheel lock is a popular setup for cargo bikes.Ca Go has outfitted the CS with Bosch’s latest Cargo Line mid-drive motors.Real suspension forks. Powerful hydraulic disc brakes with huge rotors. Quality tires. The Ca Go CS isn’t inexpensive by any means, but there also doesn’t seem to be any place the company cut corners.The bars on the Ca Go CS are very high, but there’s also a lot of room for adjustment. It feels a little odd for me, although in fairness to Ca Go, I’m only 1.72 m (5′ 8″) in height and this is a one-size-fits-all machine.Ca Go’s first model, the FS, was also on hand. Think of it as an Urban Arrow on steroids. I still want one.The breadth of selection of cargo bikes at Eurobike was truly astounding.This cargo bike doesn’t look super remarkable until you notice the central pivot hardware. It folds in half!These sorts of tricycles were also quite popular in the cargo area of this year’s Eurobike show. They’re a big hit with families.I have to admit that I like the looks of this thing.It’s not just about cargo bikes at Eurobike; trailers are also a big category, too, and this was one of the most interesting ones I’ve seen.The trailer shell is made of some sort of carbon fiber composite. The big benefit here is supposedly safety since the little ones held inside would be coccooned inside a sturdy shell.Need to carry some snacks for the kiddos? Stuff them in the slide-out trunk.Double-wishbone suspension on both sides.Airflow is designed as if the trailer was a giant helmet.There are also flip-down wheels should you want to use the trailer as a buggy instead.I’ve never been a huge fan of recumbents myself, but the mechanics of this one still caught my eye. Seems like it might actually be fun to rip through corners on this thing?Yet another way to haul cargo.Big load!One for the little ones.Iumentum’s cargo bikes are unusually lightweight, but still boast some pretty impressive carrying capacities.Iumentum outfitted this one with all sorts of exotic lightweight goodies.Cable-operated steering has become increasingly popular in the cargo bike space in recent years. Some are executed very well, others not so much. Iumentum’s design feels pleasantly fluid, but I worry about suspectibility to weather.This heavy-duty trike was designed to move larger shipping containers around.They make it seem so easy, no?Another folding cargo bike. This design definitely reduces the storage footprint, but it still strikes me as a bit ungainly.Cargo bike or cargo trailer? There were plenty of options for both at this year’s Eurobike show, and lots of ways to move your things around.You don’t want the kids to get cold or wet, right?Imagine how many bags of Haribo you could fit in here!I’m all for new ideas on the cargo bike front, but I’m not sure I love the idea of situating your load up high like this – particularly passengers. However, note the additional platform down below. In concept, then, it’s not all that different from the new Ca Go CS.Now this concept was super intriguing. See that tank mounted on the back of the seat tube? It’s for compressed hydrogen. Yep, this is a fuel cell cargo bike.This unfortunately isn’t a functional concept, but it’s neat nonetheless.The front end features a steerable hub.
