I was caught out in the rain on a walk in Brooklyn Heights on the afternoon of September 6, 2025. While sheltering under an awning in front of the Bossert Hotel at the corner of Hicks and Montague Streets (just around the corner from where I documented a parked Cybertruck in March), I noticed an Amazon eQuad cargo bike “parked” on the opposite corner.
I wrote about Amazon’s so-called cargo “bikes” back in April, and as luck would have it some people found that article interesting. I am not averse to writing what people want to read, so long as I want to write it. From my vantage point across the street of this particular vehicle, I suspected I may have a new Amazon bike article topic. Note in the image that the “bike” is “parked” oddly. Its tail (or back?) lights are on, it is tilting to its right, and it appears to have stopped crookedly in the crosswalk.
While still sheltering from the rain, another Amazon eQuad cargo bike came rolling down Hicks Street. This bike, unlike the oddly parked bike, had a driver/rider. Upon seeing the distressed eQuad cargo bike, the Amazon driver started yelling, loud enough for me to hear him in the street: “Wow! What in the world happened to you!?” The Amazon driver slowed down slightly, still yelling his astonishment about the sedentary eCargo bike, before continuing on his very wet way. I would remain under the awning for a few more minutes until the rain let up a bit.
When I was satisfied that the rain went from a torrential down-pour to a strong drizzle, I crossed the street to inspect the Amazon package-carrier.
I finally saw the reason why the bike had stopped in an odd place and was leaning sideways. Its right front wheel appears to have been dislodged from its axle. See a closer shot below:
While the “bike” was not parked in an ideal location, especially for pedestrians hoping to use the crosswalk, I suppose this incident highlights a hidden benefit of the form-factor, a form-factor that I approve of. While the vehicles are designed as they are in significant part to take advantage of New York City’s growing network of bike lanes, it also makes it more likely that an inoperable vehicle will not obstruct traffic.
Sure enough, no cars had difficulty making the pass, although I suspect that some Brooklyn Heights residents may have had difficulty receiving their packages that day. I did not stick around to see the resolution, but the eCargo bike was gone when I passed by the intersection later that same day.
