Mit dem Lastenrad durch die Stadt

June 3 was European Bike Day. Since 1998, people have been pedaling to draw attention to the increasing burden of car traffic. The mobility project WeRa of the BUND Ravensburg-Weingarten also wants to move the bicycle more into the focus of daily use.  Students at Ravensburg-Weingarten University of Applied Sciences (RWU) have given shape and color to the cargo bike initiative.

A free cargo bike rental service for Ravensburg and Weingarten - this idea from BUND was the initial spark for the cargo bike project. The idea was given shape in the UX Design seminar at RWU. Under the direction of Professor Klemens Ehret and Professor Jürgen Graef, students of Digital Medie Design provided creative and technical support for the project. Basic elements such as the name and logo were created, as well as a website through which the cargo bikes can be booked free of charge. "Our aim was to make the design as user-friendly as possible, while at the same time aesthetic and appealing," says Carla Deyerberg, a fourth-semester student. The programming of the website (www.wera-lastenrad.de) was done separately, by a student under the supervision of Professor Marius Hofmeister.

An environmentally friendly alternative to the car

Whether it's a dog, a toddler or the week's shopping, a cargo bike can carry a lot. And quite incidentally, one makes a contribution to sustainable mobility. "However, the purchase of a cargo bike is expensive. In addition, very few people want to put 5,000 to 6,000 euros on the table without having had their first experience with such a vehicle," says Ute auf der Brücken, WeRa project coordinator. This is where WeRa enters the picture: the initiative offers free rental of motorized cargo bikes in Ravensburg and Weingarten. "We want people to simply try out a cargo bike and come into contact with this means of transport." This is how the project coordinator describes the offer. Since May, the first cargo bike could be borrowed in front of the BUND nature conservation center at Leonhardstraße 1. From June 7, the location was moved in front of Café Bezner, at Holbeinstraße 32 in Ravensburg. At the beginning of July, the WeRa fleet will be expanded by a second bike, which will be located on the campus of the RWU.

Text: Vivian Missel