It can be convenient to have a bicycle cargo trailer that converts into a trailer that is easily pushed around by hand. This can be useful for wheeling your gear down to the beach while leaving your bike parked. Or pushing your trailer through the grocery store. It is a useful mode if you have to push your trailer through an apartment building or to the office.
The Wandertec BONGO bike cargo trailer has been built with the ability to transform into a handy unit for walking by the good folks at Wandertec. The hitch arm of the BONGO can be quickly rotated 90 degrees into a position that is suitable for walking by loosening the two quick releases on the hitch arm bracket, turning the hitch arm and tightening the quick releases. An extension to the handle that makes it a more ergonomic for handling is due to be released sometime in 2010.
The Carry Freedom City rolls extremely comfortably by hand. When not hooked to a bicycle it looks almost like a small hand trolley style suitcase and is even easier to roll with its 12″ wheels. It even has small roller wheels for rolling it sideways through doors and turnstiles. This bicycle trailer has become very popular for bike commuting as it easily goes from a light-weight bike trailer to an easy to roll trolley that glides smoothly into the office and folds up very compactly to be tucked away.
The Leggero Trolley is a Swiss made trailer that actually transforms into a small shopping cart. It has a brilliant design that allows it to pop-up into a shopping cart configuration. For bicycling or walking it folds down into a more compact 2-wheeled position.
The Croozer Cargo Trailer features a hitch arm with a two-position bracket. The hitch arm can be quickly reposition from its bicycle cargo position to an upward position that makes it easy to pull the trailer by hand.
The Burley Flatbed is not designed for use as a walking trailer, however can easily be used as one. This is accomplished by taking out the hitch arm from the bike trailer body and then reinserting it, rotated upwards at 90 deg. The hitch arm’s lock pin cannot be inserted in this position, however its push button tab keeps it well enough in place for walking. The safety strap of the Flatbed’s hitch arm makes for a good handle. A home-made PVC handle extension could easily be attached to the end of the hitch arm as well.
For more, have a look at our follow up post on Bike Trailers as Hand Carts.