News

The days of speeding are numbered

March 27, 2019

One day in the not too distant future, folk will look at today's roads as frontiers-style motoring; speeding is endemic and motorists can drive dangerously and even kill with near impunity. However new legislation means the days of speeding traffic look numbered. The ETA started campaigning for speed limiters in cars in the early 1990s and...

General News

Bike lights to celebrate summertime cycling

March 27, 2019

The start of British Summer Time this weekend means you can start to be a little more flexible in your lighting requirements. The Bookman USB Light is compact and lightweight, but surprisingly bright. It fits all bicycle handlebars and seat posts and is quick and easy to attach with its rubber band. Its large button on the upper side is...

General News

50 years behind the Netherlands...and counting

March 15, 2019

On a trip to the Netherlands last week, we didn't see a single cyclist. Just tens of thousands of people using bicycles to get about. We didn't see a single item of high visibility clothing and spotted only four riders wearing helmets. Most interesting was the healthy disrespect the Dutch appear to have for their bicycles; left overnight in...

Cycling

Promoting active travel...and having fun

March 15, 2019

The promotion of active travel and the campaign against road danger are issues as serious as they come, but that doesn't mean it's not possible to have fun while delivering serious messages. Here are a just a few examples of our work from the last few years. Pop-up zebra crossing Countless schools struggle to keep their children protected...

Cycling

Get a gripster

March 15, 2019

Now the weather has returned to being cold, if your bicycle wants to spend the night inside, you can use a Gripster to protect walls from scratches and scrapes. However carefully you lean your bike against an inside wall, tell-tale rubber marks and small chips to the plaster or wall paper are hard to avoid. Gripster is a rubber plug that...

Cycling

Making equality the norm

March 8, 2019

Last Spring, we made the decision to stop using titles in our written communications with all our customers. We deem the use of honorifics and titles, to distinguish between married/unmarried women, but not men, to be outmoded and discriminatory. Titles can often set people up against each other as they imply some as worthier than others....

General News

Where will you travel in 2019?

March 4, 2019

It's hard to know whether spring has sprung, but the promise of better weather is enough to spread the travel bug. Bicycles that have been languishing in sheds over the winter deserve to be brushed off and readied for a summer of riding, travel maps dusted off and adventures planned. If you are planning to cycle abroad, Bike Express makes...

Cycling

The disposable bag is dead. Long live 'notabag'

March 4, 2019

As disposable plastic carrier bags edge towards extinction, their place is being taken by a new generation of lightweight reusable bag. Whether you are popping out on your bike or off on holiday further afield, the reflective Notabag is a clever combination of a bag and a backpack made from high visibility reflective material. It's party...

Cycling

Surly by name, city friendly by nature

March 1, 2019

According to a recent survey of 4,300 cities around the world, 80 per cent of urban areas do not comply with World Health Organisation air quality guideline levels. Worse still, particulate air pollution levels in many developing cities can be up to 15 times higher than WHO guideline levels, putting many at risk of long-term health problems...

Cycling

Tall bikes can save the world

March 1, 2019

Roads have a social hierarchy of their own. Generally speaking, the bigger the vehicle the more entitled the attitude of the driver - an anti-social and potentially deadly hierarchy that puts vulnerable road users at greatest risk. This inequality is part of the inspiration for tall bikes - and there is none more lofty than this...

Cycling