Indian Cargo Bikes
The bicycle in India is a thing of necessity, a solution to the problem of getting something from here to there; and a way to increase one’s carrying capacity and range above some sort of financial break-even point. A large number of the human-powered vehicles on the streets here are working vehicles and, with few variations, there are three basic sorts of cargo cycle in use in India: the workman’s bicycle, the trike, and the reversed trike.
The Workman’s Bicycle
This is a basic black bike made of heavy cheap steel. For $50, you get a machine to take you and whatever else you can balance from point A to point B with less effort than walking, and it will continue to do so for many years with a minimum of service. You won’t see fancy things like aluminum parts or multiple gears but full steel fenders, a chain guard, and a heavy-duty kickstand do come standard. Brakes are linkage and stirrup, and the platform pedals come in black plastic. Security is a sliding lock welded to the seat stays. When engaged, it free-locks the rear wheel.
The workman’s bike almost always has a large heavy-duty rack. This is often used as a passenger seat. Often, a second seat will be attached to the top tube for a smaller person to sit on. I have often seen three or four people riding on one bike. When the rack is used to carry things instead of passengers, it can hold quite a bit. The egg man rides with 300+ eggs, the iceman ties on huge blocks of ice. The milkman has hooks welded to the sides of his rack and carries two large pails dangling from either side. The laundry man sometimes carries a bundle five feet in diameter. The long wheelbase and significant weight of the rest of the bike make carrying heavy loads mostly a matter of balance and leg strength.
The Trike
To make a trike, the frame is often built with not just a double top tube but also a doubled down tube. In place of the chainstays, a wishbone of angled iron extends back and spans the axle. Rebar seat stays are welded in, and a steel and wooden box is built to sit behind the rider. The wheels are heavy-duty things, often forgoing tensioned spokes for solid bars of rebar welded to hub and rim. Tires are likely to be four or five inches wide. The drivetrain consists of a standard Indian set of cottered steel cranks on a chainring (perhaps with the brand name “Atlas” or “Hero” stamped into the steel), about eight feet of chain, and a cog bolted to the middle of the axle.
With this setup, I have seen people carry a whole tree’s worth of firewood, a haystack, an automobile engine block, a dozen bags of cement, quite a lot of rebar, and a pile of coconuts.
Sometimes, instead of the truck bed, a chair or even a pair of sideways- facing benches is built, making the vehicle into a cycle-powered rickshaw, good for hauling a whole family, or a pair of intrepid tourists and all their crap.
The Reverse Trike
In cities, these are more common than the standard trikes, as they increase manoeuvrability without sacrificing too much in the way of carrying capacity. In Mumbai, the propane delivery trikes are legion. Piped in gas, whether for heating or cooking, is not something that happens in India. Instead, fuel is distributed in red canisters. My delivery guy showed up last month with his basket holding five of these bottles‚ a load just large enough to use the trike instead of a workman’s bike outfitted with hooks on the rack. I pass him every so often while riding around the neighbourhood and though I speak no Marathi and he speaks no English, we share a smile and a nod of appreciation for each other’s rides.
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