Hills for cyclists are a fact of life. When we are training, either on the road bike or mountain bike we relish the challenge of a big climb and bask in the endorphin fuelled glory afterwards.
But for many casual cyclists and commuters, a pesky hill might be the reason the bike is not riden to work or out to get the groceries. In a bid to get more bums on saddles and remove this barrier to entry, Trondheim, a small town in Norway came up with Cyclocable (previously known as Trampe).
Unveiled in 1993, the 130 metre-long (427 ft) bike escalator has a maximum capacity of six cyclists per minute and speed of 2 m/s (4-5 mph). The distance between footplates is 20 meters (66 ft). During its 15 year operation it has pushed more than 200,000 cyclists up the hill in Trondheim known as Brubakken.
Cyclocable which is free of charge to use was invented by bike enthusiast Jarle Wanvik, who hopes to see more bike escalators installed around the world to help promote casual cycling.
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