Flying domestically with the Brompton
Last Wednesday, I flew to New York to speak at a conference put on by Transportation Alternatives.
I was nervous; the last time I tried to fly domestically with my Brompton, it didn’t go so well on a flight to Sacramento. The only time I had successfully carried the bike on was flying internationally.
Getting past TSA is always a breeze — the bike fits without an issue through metal detectors. The gate is more of a wildcard, as technically the bike is a few inches too wide to be carried on. But with my Carradice backpack, it works; the gate agents don’t seem to pay much attention to the size of backpacks.
Once on board, I had no issues sliding the bike safely in the backpack into the overhead bin — and it closed without an issue.
On arrival at JFK, I took the AirTrain to the LIRR into the city; the freedom you have with your own bike (+train when needed), which fits into a backpack, in the city is just awesome. You can literally go anywhere, anytime, without having to deal with parking, traffic, or other motorist inconveniences.
After an awesome advocates dinner the night before, it was great to speak at Transportation Alternatives’ Vision Zero Cities conference at NYU. The energy you get from being around other advocates, other people that see the way the world is and want to change it, is intoxicating.
I’m at the point where I can’t imagine not traveling with my Brompton. The bike is not only super useful in nearly every situation, but it’s so easy to carry with you, and so fun to ride.