Countries across the globe have reportedly registered a sharp increase in the sale of bicycles owing to the curtailed public transport amid coronavirus lockdown. Sources cite that even bicycles with big vendors like Target and Walmart have been sold out and individual shops are doing a brisk business through the sale of affordable family bikes.
For the record, the sales boom has been witnessed owing to the working population’s continued search for a better alternative to buses and subways. Bicycles have also been chosen as an effective alternative for closed gymnasiums and an essential way for keeping children active in the stay-at-home environment.
According to Jay Towley, Human Powered Solutions, bicycle sales have reportedly witnessed the biggest spike in the U.S. over the past two months. Recalling the rush while purchasing essentials like hand sanitizer and toilet paper during the initial stages of the pandemic, he has also stated that people in the country have started purchasing bikes like toilet paper. He has further opined that if bicycle sales continue to show the current trend, it will take weeks to resolve the supply shortages particularly in the U.S. that depends over China for about 90 per cent of its bicycles.
For the uninitiated, the bicycle sales were kicked off in mid-March at a time when most of the countries announced the closure of borders and shutting of businesses in their territory.
Apart from the U.S., a surge has also been registered in other countries including Italy and the Philippines. The capitals of these countries have installed separate bike lanes for accommodating the increase in cycling when public transport stands curtailed.
As per sources, a boom has been registered in the consumer demand for electric-assist bikes, also called e-bikes. A Dutch e-bike maker, Van Moof, has stated that a persistent demand for consumer electric bikes has caused an order backlog of almost 10 weeks as compared to the usual custom of one-day delivery service.
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