Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Bicycling

New York Suffering From Bike Shortage

2:31 PM EDT on May 30, 2008

2322152964_4fa125a54b.jpg
Customers check out the selection at Bicycle Habitat in SoHo

The Sun has a pretty amazing story today about New York bike shops. It seems they're running out of stock as demand for bikes increases across the country.

High gas prices are causing spot shortages of bikes in New York City, as commuters turn to pedal power.

Many of these new cyclists are from areas not commonly associated with the "Bike Belt" - neighborhoods such as the Upper West Side and Williamsburg in Brooklyn - but are instead from Queens and other places where driving to work has long been common and affordable. With gas costing nearly $4 a gallon, these commuters are switching to bikes, leaving some stores short on fashionable brands and preferred colors.

The owner of Dixon's Bicycle Shop in Park Slope, Brooklyn, David Dixon, said that over Memorial Day weekend, his store sold all 25 of its Jamis hybrid bikes - a cross between a racing bike and a mountain bike that sells for between $285 and $335 and is favored among commuters. Early this week, Mr. Dixon called Jamis to order about 50 more bikes and was told that a shipment wouldn't arrive until the end of the week. "They're all gone. It's wicked," Mr. Dixon said. "This isn't usual at all. The price of gas is affecting everyone."

"We ended up selling very heavily," the owner of Bicycle Habitat in SoHo, Charles McCorkell, said. "I thought there would be a shortage."

And all this without any desperate, destructive gimmicks to unload inventory.

Bike month, indeed.

Photo: richdrogpa / Flickr 

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Maximum Rage: Delivery Workers Protest Low Wages, App ‘Lockouts’

Couriers with bikes and signs urge the city to step in as Uber Eats, GrubHub and DoorDash withhold work, they say.

March 28, 2024

The Toll of History: MTA Board Approves $15 Congestion Pricing Fee

New York City's congestion pricing tolls are one historic step closer to reality after Wednesday's 11-1 MTA board vote. Next step: all those pesky lawsuits.

March 28, 2024

Company That Fought McGuinness Safety Project Wants to Seize Bklyn Street for Private Backlot

Broadway Stages to Greenpoint residents: "Street safety for me, not for thee."

March 28, 2024

SEE IT: Hit-and-Run Driver With Fake Plate Seriously Injures Cyclist

The 5 p.m. crash occurred at Flushing and Waverly avenue near the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

March 28, 2024

Thursday’s Headlines: Shakira Shakira Edition

Pop superstar Shakira performed for a crowd of 40,000 packed into the Times Square pedestrian plazas. Plus congestion pricing news and more.

March 28, 2024
See all posts