As people who love riding bikes, mainly for fun but also for the additional benefits of personal transportation, fitness and cheapness relative to owning a second car, S and I were very concerned about how having a child would impact our (particularly my) ability to get around by bike. It's the main way I keep fit, and it's my main source of fun.
We also wanted to share our love of cycling with K. We'd like it to be something we do regularly as a family, and we'd like to demonstrate to her how personal transportation can be environmentally sustainable. We also wanted her to be as safe as possible while out riding with us.
So, we bit the Bullitt (I'm so punny!) and bought one of these. It wasn't cheap, but it was much cheaper than a second car. As far as we can tell it's by far the safest way to carry a baby on a bike. You need the cargobike, and you need to put a rear-facing capsule in it for the little one. The capsule's effectively a full-body helmet for the baby. It sits, strapped, in a steel bracket with suspension, specifically designed for the purpose.
As K gets bigger we'll modify the bike's setup for her. One day all-too-soon (though we can't imagine it yet) she'll be big enough to sit up in a seat and wear a helmet, and that seat will replace the capsule and bracket on the Bullitt's platform. We might even build a box on the platform, creating a true 'Bakfiets' (Bak=box, Fiets=bike). The platform can hold at least 100kg, so there's no problem carrying a couple of school-aged kids on it. We figure we'll get many years of use out of it and it will definitely be our 'mothership' on family cycling adventures for several years to come. Hopefully I'll have the dedication to bring those stories to you here on Sprogbike!
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