How time flies. I first reviewed the original Urban Arrow in 2020, when my kids were 3 and 5. Back then, nothing delighted a couple of preschoolers more than strapping into a big, motorized cargo bike and scooting around town, shrieking, with the wind blowing in their tiny faces. Alas, they are now 8 and 10. When I picked up my 8-year-old two days ago, he crouched down in the box while sitting on the padded seats (with seat belts!) so that none of his friends would see him.
All this to say: My Tern GSD and I are great friends, but I wish my kids were five years younger so I could’ve bought the FamilyNext Pro instead. Urban Arrow’s new electric cargo bike has a lot of great upgrades, is easier to ride than ever, and is even more useful as my kids have gotten older.
Bounce House
To the naked eye, the two biggest upgrades to the FamilyNext Pro are a newly redesigned cargo box and suspension on the front fork. (It also comes in a very classy, new sage green, but unfortunately, my demo bike was in black.)
The box looks totally different—my friend asked if my bike had gotten longer somehow. It’s longer and slimmer, with rounded corners instead of square ones, and there are now headlights on the bike. It has shorter sides, so it’s easier to get in and out. Unlike other bakfiets, or box bikes, that I’ve tried, the box sits much lower to the ground. I can confirm that in my testing, both adults and kids had an easy time climbing in and out.
The box is made from expanded polypropylene (EPP) foam, which is initially disconcerting—it shows dings and bumps very easily. However, Urban Arrow describes it as “an upside-down helmet,” and the foam cushioning did reassure me that even if I let the bike tip over, my kids or friends wouldn’t just immediately hit the pavement. You can also replace the foam easily in the event of a crash or some other unsightly event.
The front cargo box now has a front fork with 60 millimeters of travel. I truly love this. It really is a safety issue when you’re going fast with 60 to 150 pounds in the front box. I was cruising along at 20 mph and hit a pothole, and I just boinged right out of it.
Photograph: Adrienne So