You know a design team is struggling to come up with original goodies when it tries to perfect a design that has already been sold in millions throughout the world for more than 100 years. One such attempt as redefining everything you ever knew about a bicycle is the Ford Citi Bike prject that is the brainchild of designers Jose Arturo Moreno, Isabel Ayala and Jimena Compean. The bike seeks to capitalize on the rising bike commute trend that has people ditching their cars and motorcycles for human powered options that also help them burn a few calories on route to work. Also designed to combat traffic congestion and parking shortage in metropolitan areas, the Citi Bike is inspired by the 2013 Ford Focus ST and is characterized by a super low slung profile.
The low riding bike claims that it aims to make the process of pedaling more feminine and less of an exposure risk for women dresses in skirts and dresses for the office though the designers claim that the low profile will also be hugely beneficial for inexperienced riders. The bike comes with torsion bars for steering, dented bands for traction and uses a gear based propulsion mechanism though it would ultimately be the office-commute readiness that would set it apart from other options in the market. The Citi Bike is aimed primarily at urban professionals and accordingly comes laced with places to hold tablets and laptops.
Currently in the conceptual stage, the bike would definitely be refined further to make it more suitable for commuters who need to ride it over a few good city blocks each day to and from work. However, it would be really interesting to see whether the designers also add a place for the rider to stash their helmet, bags and watter bottles when they launch a final production version of the model.
