Human Powered Machines "Long Haul"
[photo by HPM]
Check out how these Oregon made cargobikes from HPM can be adapted to haul kids. A great chance to buy local and build-in any desired customization. One interesting option to consider would be to build one of these with a Bakfiets style & sized cargo box and take advantage of existing covers and accessories from NL.
posted by Richard at 10:03 AM
3 Comments:
Any word on what the folks in Eugene at CAT are saying about all the hubub about Bakfietsen up here?
um, they're a tad defensive:
"Leave a smaller footprint: buy local
Mass-produced bikes from overseas leave a larger carbon footprint once you factor in all the external costs. We find it ironic that such a fossil-free vehicle would have to be shipped from halfway around the world when they can be manufactured locally."
and
"Unlike mass-produced bikes brought in from overseas, we are able to customize almost any detail of the design to match the customer's needs. Unfortunately (for those of us in our "I want it now" culture), the process does not happen overnight. We have tightened up our production schedule and have pulled in the wait time from six months to three months for those who need a bike as soon as possible."
and then there's this gem:
"Most workbikes in the world have lacked the quality that serious cyclists take for granted. "
wtf?
most European "workbikes" are built like tanks, to withstand heavy use and rough treatment from not-so-motivated employees and still carry on earning revenue day in and day out, without costly repairs and downtime...
Anonymous - I put this post in on the blog to simply raise awareness that there is a very local cargo bike option out there. I'm not a big fan of the design for my purposes. It's just that one of the primary arguments always raised against the Bakfiets by otherwise pro-cargobike folks is that they are not a local product...
HPM has a reputation with nearly everyone I've talked to around town for a general lack of responsiveness to calls and email. Some people have reported getting no response at all to inquiries. I think they are missing a real opportunity to put their money where their mouth is and actually put more locally produced bikes on the road. Unfortunately, if they can't get their customer service together or production levels up to meet even rather modest demand they are not going to be of a real participant in reducing the "carbon footprint" they claim to be so concerned about.
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