A Dunedin cycle shop says demand for electric cargo bikes has spiked, particularly from families looking for a cheaper and more environmentally friendly way to get around.
Cargo bikes are characterised as having a cargo area either at the front or rear of the bike and are designed to allow riders to transport heavy loads, such as groceries or children.
Among those to make the switch is Dunedin resident Jenny Clarkson, who bought her and her family a cargo bike from a Wellington shop in 2019.
The bike had a large basket in the back, which fit her two daughters comfortably, and a smaller one in the front, perfect for their school bags.
"The girls love it, they get to school quite a bit fresher."
Ms Clarkson’s two daughters get loaded into the back for school dropoff, skipping the school-rush queue and saving a pretty penny in petrol.
"Part of the reason for getting it was to avoid traffic and trying to speed up the trip as well, because in a car it seems to take forever to get anywhere in Dunedin."
Ms Clarkson’s daughters’ school is in a cul-de-sac and she could now do a "dump and run".
"We just take a shortcut ... offload the kids and then away we go — quick and easy."
Ms Clarkson said she would be taking her daughters on the bike as long as possible.
"I know people with young teenagers, but at that point they might say ‘this isn’t cool any more Mum’, but we’ll just keep doing it as long as we can."
When Covid lockdowns lifted, people in cars at traffic lights would wind down their windows and ask the family what they were riding.
"People are curious about it.
"I’ve been getting less questions and I have been seeing more around."
Bike House Dunedin co-owner Matt Dunstan said the bikes had been rising in popularity.
The store sold about 20 cargo bikes last year — an increase from selling a single cargo bike since they began selling them a few years ago.
"It’s a bit of a mixture for what people are using them for — we have people using them just for groceries, some who have bought them specifically for their dogs, taking a surfboard to the beach and for work.
"We have a landscape gardener, a few courier delivery drivers and a contractor."
Mr Dunstan said their big market was families, and the cargo bikes solved families’ main barrier for using a normal bike — the morning school dropoff.
"I used mine for loading the kids in, I would not have been able to do that on a normal bike."
