The Urban Arrow Electric Cargo bike is one we have been wanting to review for some time now. We have seen pictures of them in Europe and with their new updates there have been more around in the United States. We were very happy to have one for a week of testing this front load electric cargo bike.

Orbea Diem

The Lab

The Urban Arrow Family is a class 1 pedal assist bike with pedal assist up to 20mph. It has a 500 watt hour battery that powers to Bosch Cargo line mid drive motor. The Bosch Kiox display gives you all the information from on demand range, battery life, cadence and more. You can also connect to Connect Smartphone app with the display as well. The display can also be removed when parked which disables the bike. 

The Urban Arrow is equipped with the Enviolo Heavy Duty hub with a Gates carbon belt drive. The Enviolo hub acts as a CVT transmission and has unlimited gearing which you can shift while stopped. The brakes are Magura eBike ABS 4-piston hydraulic disc brakes front and rear. The steering rod has been updated to offer more stability at control at high speeds. It is an integrated front and rear light and mounting points for a rear rack. There is also an Abus rear wheel lock to lock the bike when parked. 

The rear wheel is 26 inches and the front is 20 inches and they both have Schwalbe Super Moto tires mounted to them. You can carry up to four passengers and there are 2 seat belts built in the front cargo area as well as a bench seat. Total carrying capacity is 551 pounds. You can carry up to 275 lbs in the front cargo area. The Urban Arrow Family weighs 112 pounds and is 108 inches long. The estimated average range is about 30 miles, but that is going to very on load capacity and pedal assist levels

Advantages

The Urban Arrow Family has a lot of features that we really enjoyed. This is an awesome looking bike and definitely a head turner when riding around. The Bosch cargo line system in combination with the Enviolo heavy duty hub and gates belt carbon drive really give this a smooth ride. Even though the bike weighs over 100 pounds it does not feel that way even in Eco pedal assist mode. 

Having massive storage space on the front of your bike is very convenient. The ability to carry items in the front is just very awesome. Its nice to not have to strap anything down and just put cargo right in front. Also, if you have children loaded up, being able to see them in front of you while riding is a great way to make sure they are safe. 

The Urban Arrow Family also handles super well at speed and feels balanced with and without cargo. We rode around with an adult that weighs 160lbs and the bike handled it with ease. Even with this added weight the bike accelerated well and the brakes were smooth and did a good job of stopping. The Magura AND brakes also work super well, we did multiple brake tests and each time the bike stopped without the wheels locking up. The saddle is comfortable and adjustable so a few people in the household would be able to use this bike. The handle under the seat is very helpful when putting the bike on the center stand. The center stand is also nice and stable and easy to get the bike set up on it. The Integrated headlight is bright and having it low on the bike is nice to illuminate the road in front of you. 

Drawbacks

There is not much we didnt enjoy about the Urban Arrow Family but one thing is that this bike is very long. At 9 feet long this does take up a lot of space. Next to my motorcycle it is one complete wheel length longer. So to own this bike you will need a decent amount of garage space to keep it inside. At first at low speeds it does feel a little wobbly, but that is something that you get used to fairly quickly. This could be intimidating for people not used to hauling cargo or a bit nervous about wobbles. 

Getting going up hills from a stop is slight challenging and takes some getting used to as well. Having the Enviolo hub is very helpful with this since you can shift to the easiest gear from a stop. To help get going a bit quicker I would put it in a higher pedal assist mode from the start to get my balance and then lower pedal assist when moving again. 

Final Thoughts

The Urban Arrow Family could easily be a car replacement for someone or a family looking to downsize the amount of cars they have. The bike can carry a few kids in there with ease and comes with a bench seat with two seat belts already. There are many thoughtful accessories to keep them safe and even dry in the wet. This could be a great bike for deliveries as well. It is more designed for human cargo though, as the foam cargo area could get dinged with sharp objects. The ability to carry up to 275lbs in the cargo area really makes this bike super versatile.  Being able to park right in front of a store is awesome and convenient. This was one of our favorite cargo bikes to ride this year, and we look forward to seeing more electric cargo bikes like this on the road in the future.

Price: $7,999
Sizes: One Size
Weight: 112 lbs
Website: www.urbanarrow.com