Nieves said he would already consider it a “good month’’ if he could sell at least 20 bikes within such a period, since not that many Filipinos are into biking because of the country’s tropical climate and unsuitable road conditions.
Nieves was not alone. Other bike sellers and distributors interviewed by the Inquirer reported a surge in sales—and shared the hope that it was not a mere, short-lived trend but a hint of a larger, permanent shift in favor of sustainable transport. Since some of the company’s imports are from China and Italy—two of the countries hit hardest by the coronavirus—most of its shipments got stalled even before the start of the Luzon lockdown.
Normally, mountain bikes prove to be bestsellers during the dry season, he said. Now, even stocks of city bikes and foldable bikes are almost out. “We just wanted to see if there are people looking for bikes,” said Desiree Lim, 26. “Because bike shops are considered nonessential, we weren’t allowed to operate. We had zero sales in March. So I told my parents we can try shifting to online [sales].”
But alas, promoting cycling as a means of urban transport remains an “afterthought” in government urban planning, according to Keisha Mayuga, a licensed environmental planner who studies transport and urban planning.
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