A Liberal Democrat member of the London Assembly who suggested that construction workers could travel by bike instead of vans to tackle high fuel costs, congestion and emissions has responded after social media became awash with AI-generated videos mocking the idea of tradespeople using bikes to carry tools and equipment.
In the debate – that appeared on LBC’s Cross Question with Iain Dale last Thursday – Hina Bokhari said that travelling by van in London is not “economical” and “doesn’t make sense”, suggesting that a cargo bike is another option: “This is a way forward”, says Bokhari, citing the Assembly’s investigation and Winning the Race to Net Zero report that urges Transport for London to promote alternative travel options.
Conservative councillor Festus Akinbusoye dismisses the idea of carrying equipment such as a cement mixer by cargo bike, while Dale also chimes in by asking how a ladder can be carried by cargo bike.
“There’s enough ways to carry all sorts of things on a cargo bike”, continued Bokhari.
“You can carry fridges, you can carry enormous amounts on cargo bikes. Even TfL are looking into it.”
A week later, the debate has continued to inspire hundreds of AI-generated clips and images of tradespeople carrying ladders, tins of paint, and other unwieldy items on bikes that are (perhaps intentionally) a world away from modern cargo bikes – and while businesses, social media personalities and the public have joined in the pile-on, some active travel advocates and businesses that do utilise cargo bikes for their daily business such as Pedal Me have sprung to Bokhari’s defence.
In a statement, Bokhari told ebiketips: “Of course, not every tradesperson would be able to replace their van with a cargo bike. But I think a lot of businesses would be surprised by just how much modern electric cargo bikes can carry, and by the advantages they can offer, particularly in busy parts of London. They can cut costs, avoid congestion and parking problems, and help clean up the capital’s air.
“That is why, in the London Assembly, we looked at how we can make it easier for more businesses to switch to cargo bikes where that works for them. The important thing is supporting businesses that want to make that change, promoting the opportunities that are available, and making sure TfL is doing what it can to help.
“I hope the recent debate has at least opened more people’s eyes to what modern cargo bikes are capable of and encouraged more businesses to consider whether cargo bikes might actually be an option for them after all.”
So… can you carry a ladder by cargo bike?
Unequivocally the answer is yes: even on a standard rack or front carrier of an electric cargo bike such as the Tern GSD or Urban Arrow a ladder plus much more can be carried, with total rider plus cargo weights for bikes like these often rated at 200kg and above. The London cargo delivery specialist Pedal Me regularly shares pictures of huge loads its bikes can carry with add-on trailers and accessories.
The bewilderment and words used by Iain Dale and his guest in the LBC debate suggests they may have been wholly unaware of the kind of bikes Bokhari was talking about: “You are not going to carry a ladder on a push bike”, said Festus Akinbusoye, comments which perhaps helped to inspire the AI feeding frenzy that followed showing tradesmen attempting to carry loads on conventional ‘push bikes’ not built for the job for comic effect.
A quickfire radio debate was probably an unfortunate forum for Bokhari to explain how and why a properly equipped electric cargo bike can easily harbour a ladder, tools, or even a pub’s entire delivery of beer for a few days.
It could be said that the exchange and ridicule that followed demonstrated how culturally alien the concept of tradespeople using a bike is in vast swathes of the UK. Some may rarely benefit from using an electric cargo bike instead of a van: a bike could be much more difficult to load up, their daily journeys might be spread out and difficult to navigate by bike, or the equipment they need would simply be too heavy and awkward to load onto a cargo bike.
There are already tradespeople – from plumbers to electricians – who have switched to bikes successfully, so the idea is nowhere near as far-fetched as some of the commentary and reactions have made out.
45 thoughts on ““A lot of businesses would be surprised by just how much modern electric cargo bikes can carry”: London Assembly member responds to mockery over comments suggesting tradespeople switch to cargo bikes”
She’s a walking cliche of everything wrong with the political class in this country.
No business experience, no common sense, no clue whatsoever about how people or the economy functions.
Have any one of these so-called “advocates” actually run a construction business – or even worked in a non-public sector job? I don’t think so. Sad times indeed that they have any kind of decision making power, but then what do you expect with the population of London (edit) voting the way it does.
@Nigel Garage Good to see the racism, always present, coming right out in the open. The ban shouldn’t be long in coming now.
@Rendel Harris no idea what you’re talking about. I’d have said the same about any number of politicians in the UK, including some in the Tory party, regardless of their race. So not a “racism” issue at all, just a common sense issue, and how typical of you to see something that doesn’t exist.
If you watched the video rather than throwing insults around, you’d notice the guy she was arguing against was black. I’m assuming you don’t agree with him, but I wouldn’t be so childish to shout “racism” if you said so out loud.
It’s just a way for you to ignore the substantive content of the post. We have massive issues all over the UK and Europe, turning countries into powder kegs of civil unrest, yet some politicians obsess about non-sensical stuff like this, when the clear outcome of pushing people onto unsuitable forms of transport would be worse growth, more unemployment and therefore fewer tax receipts and lower government spending power on the things we need.
Yet this takes place with the blessing of many local voters who appear to live in ivory towers, blissfully unaware of how many people actually live, work and function. This is – after all – the same city that spawned politicians like Jeremy Corbyn and so forth… And I’m pretty sure Jeremy Corbyn is a white British guy.
@Nigel Garage Of course Nigel, you just slagged off an Asian-heritage politician and said how atrocious it is that people like her are in power, then said “what do you expect with the population of London being made up the way it is?” and you weren’t referencing race in the slightest. As I have had occasion to remark about many of your aliases in the past, it isn’t that you’re so stupid that’s really aggravating, it’s the fact that you assume everyone else is as stupid as you and will fall for your bullshit.
@Rendel Harris in Rendelworld, am I allowed to disagree with anyone who isn’t white? Or is that not allowed?
Because I seen to remember you disagreeing with loads of minority ethnic people publicly in the past. Or are people allowed to disagree with right-leaning ethnic minorities but not left-leaning ones? As for your ad hominem attack “you’re stupid”, it just reveals you have nothing substantive to argue and are deflecting.
@Nigel Garage Completely ignoring the fact that you said the Asian-heritage woman was only in power because of “the population of London being made up the way it is”. You are a racist and have proved so on numerous occasions under your other aliases. Deny it as much as you like, everyone who has been on this site for a reasonable length of time has seen it.
@Rendel Harris I’ve edited the first post to avoid this misinterpretation.
@Nigel Garage So you’ve taken out the racist bit in case people correctly interpret it as racist and replaced it with something completely different. Unfortunately for you I’ve already quoted it and I’ll do so again: according to you the Asian-heritage lady holding office is “[what one would] expect with the population of London being made up the way it is”. That’s very different to “voting the way it does” and weasel words and edits will not prevent people seeing your comment for what it was and you for what you are.
@Rendel Harris not to mention the “proper job” angle. (Does “possible accountant and enthusiastic Wikipedia editor” count)?
IIRC there was a poster here (haven’t seen them for ages!) who used to favour that line, possibly following their namesake UK crypto / gold speculator and serial “Nigel Farage Party Ltd” company operator … er, Nigel Farage.
Mr. Farage famously used that line in a feisty address to the EU parliament (who still pay his pension I believe). It was a misguided taunt back then also (according to the BBC – Google “BBC Reality Check: Have MEPs done ‘proper jobs’?” to save me posting the link and this likely getting held in moderation).
@jackcycles Hopefully you’ll be banned soon and we won’t have to put up with your shite for a few months.
@jackcycles Ummm…I think you’ll find many MPs have successfully run businesses and worked in all sorts of sectors previously. As for ‘business experience’, I’m not a plumber, but I know the sort of kit that plumbers carry. My plumber arrives by car, so…
@jackcycles maybe you should look into the vast array of uses that cargo bikes are employed for in the Netherlands – unlike the UK, where an increasing number of folks need a pickup truck, just to transport their sandwiches and their egos
Good job bike theft isn’t a problem in London then. Oh, wait… Still, at least there’s no bike jacking. Oh, wait… Mind you it never rains, so at least your tools won’t get wet. Oh, wait. Fortunate that there aren’t thieves around that’ll help themselves to your tools in whatever trailer you’re towing, or the trailer itself for that matter. Oh, wait…
Apart from that a genius idea from someone clearly completely in touch with life in a London in an alternate reality.
@StevenCrook motor vehicles are completely immune from tool theft?…
@ktache No, of course they aren’t immune. Are you saying cargo bikes can be made as safe as vehicles? I’d think that would be a first requirement…
Cargo bikes are vehicles.
@StevenCrook I actually do run a business using cargo bikes. And we have never had a theft of any bike or any property. (And that’s after over a decade of trading) You just adapt accordingly and carry what you need – it’s not rocket science, almost any dumbo can work it out. I have a job tomorrow and we have cargo bikes going to two locations in London. Nothing will get stolen, the cargo bikes will get exactly to their destination with no fuel costs or congestion charges and without sitting in traffic. We will set off without worrying about getting stuck in traffic or road closures. And we don’t have to listen to LBC either as we cycle and thus avoid getting our heads filled with loads of ignorant baiting.
It’s somewhat insulting to the good tradespeople of London to imply, as you seem to be doing, that they would lack the sense to store their tools in waterproof bags or boxes (which many of the type of cargo bikes tradespeople use come with as standard) when it’s raining.
Look there’ll always be some opportunities to cycle . The ‘sparks’ will be ok for PAT testing and some simple repairs . Heck I’ve seen London Fire Brigade cycling around testing hydrants near Little Venice . More sense than taking a car .
For most trades , nah
Beer barrels empty , sure .
It feels strange to me that someone would come on a site about e-bikes to explain how you can’t do things with e-bikes.
I’ve worked in IT for quite a few years now and quite often take tools, cables etc. and laptop with me on the touring bike when going to site. Try to get big box stuff delivered where I can. Sometimes take bike on train when site is more than 5-10miles away. Doesn’t always work and have to use the car, but it is possible a lot of the time. Most customers seem to like it, it’s often an ice breaker.
@Ad Hynkel Exactly, cargo bikes aren’t the only way to cut down on the van traffic. A mate of mine in the restoration business has to use his van sometimes to get his heavy equipment on site, so he’ll take his van at the start of the job with all the kit and supplies he needs, cycle commute the rest of the week and then drive van, kit and bike home at the end of the job. Not always possible, I accept, for people like emergency callout plumbers who may need a large range of supplies with them, not knowing what they’ll be facing, but lots of trades could cut down on their van use with a little planning and a change of mindset. In the case of my friend, he’s a keen cyclist but his reasons are simply pragmatic: with a job in central London every day he uses the bike not the van he saves £18 in congestion charge, sometimes as much as £80 in parking charges, and about ninety minutes in travel time.
The question should be why can’t the white vans easily get around London? Answer: It’s all the people who could easily be on bikes because they’re only carrying an iphone and a sandwich, but they’re blocking the roads in a Range Rover and blaming cyclists for the traffic.
@Aluminium can – as an alternative to vans, yes cargo bikes (plenty in Cambridge), and I’ve been wondering whether supplies could be delivered from retailers – using delivery robots. and it’s possible I suppose that ladders could fall in the same category – you could, instead of just hiring a bicycle, hire a ladder and it would arrive of its own accord.
@lawrence18uk Occasionally I see tradies travelling with some tools on the train, compact tool bags, rucksacks and wheelie luggage, often carrying long spirit levels separately, but on a couple of occasions collapsible ladders.
I spend a month most years in China because of family, and a cargo bike there with an electric motorbike style front end and either LFP or advanced lead acid batteries, costs under £100 and is the backbone of every trade. There are a hundred different kinds but what they share in common is functionality and cheapness. Even the ancient pedal pulled wooden wagons with literally welded spokes from the sixties have been electrified with e-motors attached to the underside – and they cost sod all. In China cheap transport for business is a public good like drinking water. Because to get people to work you have to make work affordable. That’s a secret of capitalism we in the UK could do better to learn.
Perhaps an article showing a) what is available in the uk as cargo bikes and) comments from real life scenarios from those already using bikes or cargo bikes as one gentleman has done in the comments. Perhaps road.cc could follow up with this. Even the London Assembly member said not every business should use cargo bikes but suggested a more nuanced approach suitable for certain trades or companies….
@JamieT (a pedant writes) she’s a London Assembly member, not an MP.
@Steve K corrected just for you!!!
@Steve K corrected just for you!!!
Moving away from the politics of this, I have asked a question a few times about cargo bikes and never really had an answer. I should highlight I have never used a cargo bike and I am unlikely to ever have a need to either.
My question is this, Why do so many cargo bikes but the cargo at the front and the rider at the back, the riders view can be restricted by the load and the long front introduces avoidable visibility restrictions when emerging from junctions. Is there another advantage to this layout that I am not seeing other than being able to see the cargo load.
@EK Spinner they are often used to carry children, which is easier when they are in front.
@EK Spinner
My guess would be because it means you can have a normal length chain. If the rear wheel was 1m further back from the normal position, it would require a chain 2m longer.
@EK Spinner this is a good question, I don’t have “the answer” if there is one. Since there are examples of both “cargo front” and “cargo rear” pros/cons can be seen.
There’s also probably “history”, and perhaps “people use what is” as in many places cargo bikes are currently a bit niche?
Lots of ways to roll (eg. 3-wheelers, the Tern GSD which seems to have a folding bike lineage (!) and is a dual 20″ wheel long-tail bike but with front carrying also…)
For the modern 2-wheel heavier-hauler designs: higher cargo or lower cargo? Assuming you’re going with lower (better stability, maybe easier loading, probably shorter overall bike for given load) … then that is usually at least one wheel smaller than 26″. Then a “bakfiets-style” carry forward of the rider, or a “longtail” behind and above the rear wheel. There’s also the Burrows 8-freight (like a reverse-bakfiets).
Anyway – if main cargo is in front, the rear can stay (conceptually) the same (including drive train – and you can have the cargo lower without the effort of running the drive chain down then up again). You can see the cargo.
Cargo behind – some say that this feels more like a normal bike to control.
Any other considerations?
Cargo in front presumably has an impact on steering / steering feel, because of the weighting closer to the steered wheel, plus, if it’s not an over-the-wheel arrangement, indirect steering mechanism (which also means added complexity), and more separation between the rider and wheel.
@mdavidford Hmm, if comparing designs where the load is “between the wheels” (2-wheel “bakfiets” style and 8freight) as opposed to having the load higher (longtail) I wonder? Also unless you’re really shifting heavy stuff the main mass is the rider.
But I’ve never ridden a two-wheel front-loader cargo bike (brief use of a 3-wheeler, but that’s a different thing again…).
I have used some indirect linkage-steer bikes (recumbents) and they all seemed easy enough to learn and manage *. Many (all normal?) bike designs tend self- balance when moving – perhaps this applies to such cargo bikes also?
* Aside from brief initial “don’t look at the front wheel” confusion. And assuming steering is not loose/faulty, which is likely rarer but still possible with a more direct system. And once you realise your turning circle is more like “car”…
Thanks for the reasoned responses folks, keeping the load low and weight on the front wheel both sound about right, I hadn’t really thought about the load being higher to the rear to clear drive trains and proportionally making the front much lighter
I don’t want people carrying heavy cargo on bikes around me and my kids when we are on cycle paths!
There should be a maximum weight allowed for an ebike. All these photos of people showing off about how much they can carry on a cargo bike scare me. What happens if they crash into me or my kids with hundreds of kilos of paint or whatever?
At some point it’s safer for everyone else for you to be on the roads in an electric van.
Bikes are bikes. They shouldn’t be used to carry heavy equipment around other cyclists. Your ability to steer and stop is massively reduced when carrying heavy loads and at the point you should be on the roads, not on bike paths.
@markvr Are you going to ban large people on bikes?
An 18 stone person is 115kg plus 20-30kg of e-bike.
Is 140kg too much when it hits you?
And stopping, are you going to ban rod brakes, cable brakes, rim brakes, coaster brakes as they’re inefficient?
What about mobility scooters? Slow, unwieldy, with infirm users. Are they ok?
@markvr Won’t somebody please think of the children! If you think about it without pearl clutching histrionics, you are much more likely to be crashed into by someone on a standard bike riding irresponsibly fast or weaving in and out on a cycle path. Because of the nature of cargo bikes and their loads they will be ridden slowly and will not be zipping in and out of the other traffic on a path. My area of London is cargo bike central both for people carrying kids et cetera and for delivery riders and I’ve yet to have a single incident with a cargo bike, whereas it’s an unusual 25 km commute where I won’t have to take evasive action against somebody riding a standard bike foolishly or inappropriately for the conditions or cirumstances. I’ve never even heard of somebody being hit by a cargo bike, I’m sure it must’ve happened somewhere but seems to be a very rare event. Your kids are far more likely to be in danger from cars and other motor vehicles, even when they are pedestrians on the pavement, than they are from cargo bikes, sensible concern is one thing but baseless paranoia is another.
@Rendel Harris what an absurd response. Of course I think of my children’s safety. It’s not pearl clutching to do that. They are much more vulnerable and less predictable than someone who is experienced at commuting every day.
And whataboutery is not a valid argument. Just because something else is also dangerous doesn’t negate my point.
Your stopping distance is much higher on a heavy cargo bike, you are much less agile. At some point you shouldn’t be mixing with vulnerable cyclists and should use the roads.
Bike paths are for cyclist, not carrying heavy cargo around. At 15mph 100kg of bricks hitting you is going to do far more damage than a person would.
At some point you should be on the roads, not weaving in and around pedestrians and other cyclists.
@markvr It is pearl clutching to want to try and ban something because of a danger that only exists in your imagination. Cargo bike stopping distances are not actually much higher, because most of them have 203 mm discs with four pot callipers, so although they are heavier they have much more stopping power. Additionally, a cargo bike carrying 100 kg of bricks is not going to be ridden fast and so the rider will often have a better chance of seeing, anticipating and stopping than a solo cyclist. You’re just making up a danger that simply doesn’t exist, where are your examples of people being put in danger or hit by cargo bikes? If heavily laden cargo bikes could be ridden in the same manner and at the same speed as a lightweight road bike you might have a point, but they can’t. Your objection is like saying racehorses can be dangerous, a donkey pulling a cart can weigh more than a racehorse, therefore donkeys pulling carts are more dangerous than racehorses.
@Rendel Harris TBF if commercial interests thought there was benefit in sending 500kg of goods down a cycle path at say 15.5mph+ (and figure out a way) no doubt some would because “free resource”. (Food delivery firms *cough*). Get something free/cheap, make money out of it – it’s just “buy cheap, sell dear”.
That would be worse since most place in the UK are barely at the start of providing any infra, never mind adequate stuff.
The flip side is that currently if kids want to get about they’ll often be on streets / roads … with multi-ton trucks, currently many with acknowledged limitations on viewing angle. Which have been comprehensively fatal to people going under them at any speed.
Or the great number of vans with drivers highly incentivised to maximise deliveries.
And while not a complete replacement, smaller vehicles and especially cargo bikes can (and do in other countries) pick up a lot of that, with (AFAIK) a good safety record…
@markvr would 100kg of bricks hurt more or less than 100kg of person though?
Of course me plus bike weighs more than me. And I often carry shopping. And I’ve moved house with the aid of a trailer. Would you suggest banning tandems? What’s your criteria for safe use, or do you not think it exists?
@markvr You’re being disingenuous or you’re simply ignorant.
First of all: answer the question you were asked instead of dodging it – do you propose we ban fat people from riding ebikes? What about gym bros? Tall men? Half the adult male cyclists I know weigh 100+ kilos.
Next, let’s point out all the misconceptions and/or lies you’re peddling(aha):
1. My “heavy” cargo bike is only 30% heavier than my normal ebike, unloaded.
2. Cargo bikes have much more robust braking systems than are typical on urban/utility bicycles exactly because they carry extra weight, so stopping distance is not the issue you pretend it is.
3. Bike paths are for bikes, and cargo bikes are bikes. Get over it.
4. People “bragging” about how much they can carry frequently aren’t actually carrying that much WEIGHT, what they’re carrying is VOLUME. A ladder – one of the common “bikes can, actually” items – is large and unweildy, but not heavy.
5. You seem to have a completely warped understanding of how cargo bikes actually work, so let me help you out: my cargo bike has a capacity of 220kg – wait, it’s okay, don’t clutch those pearls and faint just yet – but that is ALL INCLUSIVE, ie the frame, the rider, and the cargo, not 220kg of EXTRA load. Most of what people put on a cargo bike could be carried on an unelectrified pushbike, it’s simply less convenient AND LESS SAFE to do so. Do you want the big bloke wobbling along with his weekly shop stuffed into panniers and backpacks on a “safe” old push bike with rim brakes, or with that extra weight in a cargo bay designed to keep the bike’s centre of gravity low with heavy duty disk brakes?
6. If your response to that would legitimately be “neither”, then you expose yourself as simply a car-brained buffoon who wants cycling relegated to pointless leisure riding, and we have nothing more to talk about.