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Bicycle renaissance -

One of the more welcome developments of 2020 has been the comeback of the bike. As COVID-19 spread across the world, more and more people took to two wheels.

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Bicycle renaissance -

According to Colorado-based industry coalition People for Bikes, one in 10 American adults reported riding a bike for the first time in at least a year since COVID-19 hit.

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City cycling -

Cities that people never expected to become cycling hubs, such as Los Angeles and Houston, have reported significant rises in the number of people on bicycles.

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Reasons -

All this change has led to a lot of thinking and discussion about what has caused the so-called “bicycle boom” of 2020, and there are a number of potential factors.

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Alternative to public transport -

Perhaps an obvious suggestion is that fear of contracting COVID-19 has made people more reluctant to use public transport, and cycling has become the go-to alternative.

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Alternative to public transport -

For those people who have not been lucky enough to be able to work from home, commuting by bike provides a safe alternative to catching the bus or the train.

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Spare time -

Another potential reason is that people simply have more time on their hands. With limited possibilities for socializing, we have had more time to exercise.

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Source of exercise -

And with gyms and swimming pools being closed in some areas for weeks on end, cycling has become one of the more popular ways to get active.

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Readiness to repair -

Another interesting theory is that with more time on their hands, people are more prepared to take the time to maintain the bike sitting in their garage.

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Readiness to repair -

Morgan Lommele of People for Bikes believes that the lockdown rid people of the anxiety of owning an object with 100 moving parts, because “suddenly, everyone had the time to tinker.”

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Problems -

The surge in demand for bicycles signals a step in the right direction when it comes to saving the planet, but for manufacturers it hasn’t been without issues.

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Supply chain -

The bicycle supply chain is complex and dynamic, with many parts often arriving from across the globe. When COVID-19 hit, the chain was quickly disrupted.

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Brompton Bikes -

Will Butler-Adams of the UK-based bike company Brompton Bikes spoke to the BBC about the way in which COVID-19 affected his supply chain.

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Brompton Bikes -

His raw-metal supplier shut down and at one point a shipping container for his business was held up in Rotterdam for a week, leading to reduced services and stock imbalance.

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Brompton Bikes -

According to Butler-Adams, he was aware that the lockdown would be coming, but the business was just not prepared for the speed at which it hit.

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Going forward -

If the number of people wanting to buy a bike continues to rise, we hope that manufacturers will soon be in a better position to meet the demand.

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Predictions -

However, some commentators are skeptical as to whether the great bicycle boom is here to stay, or whether it will prove to be an economic anomaly peculiar to 2020.

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Skeptics -

For example, Edoardo Girardi, general manager of Full Speed Ahead Europe, believes that it’s unlikely the current demand for bicycles will keep up.

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Good signs -

There are signs that the number of people on bikes will continue to rise, however. Firstly, we shouldn’t forget that the bike industry was thriving even before the pandemic.

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Before COVID-19 -

With people becoming more environmentally-conscious, there has been a renewed interest in bikes over recent years; an interest that was only accelerated by COVID-19.

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Urban planning -

In addition, there have been changes made to a number of cities over the course of 2020, which have revolutionized the experience of urban cycling.

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Urban planning -

In Paris, for example, stretches of pop-up cycle lanes now line the Rue de Rivoli, and in London there is a designated cycle lane in Hyde Park.

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Incentives -

Such developments make urban cycling much more safe, convenient, and enjoyable, and therefore offer an incentive for people to continue cycling.

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Electric bikes -

Another important aspect of the bike boom is the simultaneous rise in electric bikes, which can be seen in a number of cities across the globe.

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Electric bikes -

Electric bikes, which are known in the industry as light electric freight vehicles (LEFVs), have been described as having the potential to “entirely remodel transportation.”

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Electric bikes -

With electric pedal assistance, e-cargo bikes are a great way to get from A to B, and are able to transport goods quickly because they do not get stuck in traffic.

Sources: (BBC)

See also: The best fitness apps of 2020

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