Overview
While some people seem to want to make it harder to be a cyclist in the city (ahem, NSW Government), others want to make it easier. We could point to many European cities — for example, Amsterdam's solar powered bike path and London's cross-city cycle highway — as well these low-cost recycled cardboard bikes and this beautiful fold-up one from Lucid Design. But this time it's IKEA who are getting on board with urban cycling, creating a chainless bike for commuters.
The bike, named SLADDA, is designed to be low maintenance so that anyone (i.e. the general population who don't know anything about chains and gears) can use and ride the bike without worrying about all the technical stuff. Instead of a chain it will have a corrosion-resistant, maintenance-free cogged drive belt that, according to IKEA, will be good for up to 15,000 kilometres.
The whole concept of the bike, which was created by global design consultancy Veryday and has already won an award, has been "designed to fit an urban lifestyle". The bike's aluminium frame is lightweight, which makes it easier to carry up and down stairs and manoeuvre in and out of your house, as well as scratch-resistant and adjustable. It will also be integrated into a 'click system', which will allow you to buy accessories — like baskets, racks and even a small trailer — that simply 'click' onto the bike.
The SLADDA is set to be available from August in Europe, with a worldwide release potentially following soon after. It will cost €699 (or about $1000 AUD).
Via Core77.