FABRAD: A Cargo Bike for the unibz Community
Di Susanne Pitro
Who wants to move around with an environmentally friendly eye-catcher? With FABRAD, the unibz Competence Centre for Sustainability introduces the first cargo bike available for free rental to members of the unibz community. The bike can be picked up and returned at the BITZ unibz fablab, supporting car-free mobility and helping to reduce CO₂ emissions.
More Than Just a Bicycle
FABRAD is not an ordinary bicycle but an XYZ CARGO TRIKE, designed and built in Hamburg. Versatile, robust, and easy to ride, it weighs only 34 kilograms, making it one of the lightest three-wheeled cargo bikes available. Thanks to its electric motor, users can easily carry heavier loads.
But that’s not all. “FABRAD is not just another mass-produced bicycle,” explains Prof. Aart van Bezooijen, member of the unibz Competence Centre for Sustainability. “It’s hand-built locally in Hamburg, using an open-source, joint-based construction system that allows the creation of various mobility solutions.”
This also means the bike can be adapted and further developed at the BITZ unibz fablab to meet different needs. “We invite everyone who uses it not only to transport goods, but also to use it for interventions in the spirit of green mobility – whether as a pop-up stand, for downtown presentations, or for public interventions,” adds van Bezooijen.
“In line with our university’s sustainability commitment, we want to offer our community practical ways to support more sustainable everyday mobility,” says Prof. Elisabeth Gsottbauer, Director of the Competence Centre for Sustainability. The visually striking, unibz-branded cargo bike also allows the university to take on a role model function in green mobility within the city of Bozen.
A special thanks goes to the FABLAB team led by Hannelore Schwabl, the team of Facility Management, as well as student Francesco Desimine for their efforts in bringing this initiative to life. FABRAD can be borrowed at the BITZ unibz fablab from January 2026 onwards. Those who wish to participate in the “user testing” (selected rides) prior to the official launch can contact aart.vanbezooijen@unibz.it.
Persone nell’articolo: Elisabeth Gsottbauer, Aart van Bezooijen, Hannelore Schwabl