Folding Bikes

Forums › Transport (cars, bikes and boats) › Folding Bikes

Kingy

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#111883 18-Nov-2012 19:49

I've just recently moved to the Wellington area and am taking the train ride into town each day for work. Each end of the train I have about a 15min (1.5km) walk so am looking at purchasing a folding bike to make those parts of the journey easier and of course the folding part making it perfect for the train.

I was just wondering if anyone has any experience with these. Are they sturdy? Easy to ride? Easy enough to fold up/down quickly?

Also what are the best brands to look for? How much will I be looking at spending? And probably the biggest question.. Where is the best place to buy them? Google isn't really helping in that regard.

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mattwnz

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#719155 18-Nov-2012 20:25

I thought the new trains had space for bikes. Don't you have to pay two fares if you take a bike or very large item like a folded bike?

davidcole

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#719188 18-Nov-2012 21:21

The trains do have a space for bikes and it was supposed to be reserved for some folding bikes only. A very stupid and shorted sighted view (as usual) if ever I saw one. Also there isn't much space as they're out in the cabin.

In the older trains they were in a conductor box - seems 2nd stupid decision was to remove that.

All that said, I do see the odd bike being transported. What the costs are I don't know. It used to be a full adult fare for the bike, not sure if that's changed.

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mattwnz

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#719200 18-Nov-2012 21:41

davidcole: The trains do have a space for bikes and it was supposed to be reserved for some folding bikes only. A very stupid and shorted sighted view (as usual) if ever I saw one. Also there isn't much space as they're out in the cabin.

In the older trains they were in a conductor box - seems 2nd stupid decision was to remove that.

All that said, I do see the odd bike being transported. What the costs are I don't know. It used to be a full adult fare for the bike, not sure if that's changed.

Yeap it was a full adult fare when I last took one. Which takes away any advantage in taking them on a daily basis due to the high cost. But that is regional councils for you.

scottjpalmer

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#719203 18-Nov-2012 21:45

Info from the regional council http://www.gw.govt.nz/folding-bikes

There was a discount offer from the council on them last year but it looks like that has ended.

Technofreak

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#719223 18-Nov-2012 22:50

There are some pretty trick folding bikes out there, some which fold up pretty small, like they'd fit into an over head locker on a plane. Can't see why one of the those should cost another fare when they're about the size of a suit case.

Price reflects how small and how strong they are.

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ajobbins

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#719227 18-Nov-2012 23:04

Here in melbourne you can take any old bike on the trains at no charge, and people do quite regularly.

Trams you must have a folding bike. We have one here but never use it. Only paid about $250 for it, and it seems sturdy enough.

It's a bit heavy tho, and if it was something you were going to have to lug aroung, it would probably worth paying a bit more to get something made of a nice light material.

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mattwnz

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#719237 18-Nov-2012 23:57

The folding ones don't look as safe to use in terms of height and visibility, than a regular mountain bike, and probably not good on the hills. I would be a bit uneasy riding that around Wellingtons roads. Also aren't all that attractive. I'll stick to walking and the bus I think.

gzt

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#719317 19-Nov-2012 09:42

I did some research a while ago. The best are about 12 kg, the cheaper ones a lot heavier. I do not recall the exact prices but $800 - $1200 for something of reasonable quality build and weight. Lots on google.

Compared to good quality mountain bikes average around 13kg little or no suspension to 17-20kg full suspension.

What kind of terrain do you need to cover? A folding scooter with large wheels might be a good option and a lot less weight.

dolsen

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#719328 19-Nov-2012 09:51

A long time ago it used to be a full adult fare. Perhaps a couple of years ago they scrapped that so it was free.
When the new trains were ordered it was said that there would be space for bikes on them. Since bringing them in, they have said that you can't have a full sized bike on the new trains during rush hour, but, they will endevor to have a old style train during the peak service so you can bring your bike in on the old train.
Outside of peak time, you can carry your bike on any train (still free).
Folding bikes can be carried for free at any time on any train.

Hmm, perhaps I should look up the link.

Here it is

Kingy

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#720548 21-Nov-2012 09:05

Late reply sorry. I don't think you can take bikes on the train during some peak hours (including the ones I take) so doing that is out of the question.

As for where I'll be riding, my workplace is on the waterfront so it will just be a casual ride from the train station to work. The other end contains some pretty serious hills but I don't think i'll be riding up them anyway haha.

I've also seen several people riding along on scooters so that might be another option. Anyone used these?

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sleemanj

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#720684 21-Nov-2012 12:08

I happened to see this come up in one of my TradeMe searches the other day, may be of interest:
http://www.trademe.co.nz/sports/aviation/auction-534812356.htm

Huh, I didn't know that Clive Sinclair had a hand in that..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVVgsQt1DK4#t=1m30s

Unfortunately, going by the video, it seems to suffer from Clive's erm, flawed genius in personal transport solutions.

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