Nice weather and electric bicycles cause considerable waiting times at the bicycle repair shop

“Three to four weeks now”, Jeffrey van Beekhoven Bikes in Amsterdam responds to the question of how long the waiting time is. “That is a disappointment for people who now want to go out again.”

Due to the nice weather, everyone pulls their two-wheeler out of the shed again, which causes a lot of crowds. But there’s more going on. “There are now also a lot of electronic bicycles,” says Erik Zeeman of De Fietsmaker in Sint Maarten. The waiting time for Erik is now one or sometimes two weeks.

E bikes

Not that such an e-bike is a problem, Erik says he can repair anything. “But we’ve been working on it for longer,” he explains. “We first have to read such an e-Bike digitally, update it, then run through all the motors, and there is simply much more peripheral equipment on such a bicycle.”

“Twenty years ago I didn’t even know the word ‘update'”, laughs experienced bicycle repairman Jan, Jeffrey’s colleague. “Nowadays I have to run with all the electrical terms.”

In the case of an electrical problem, according to all bicycle dealers, it is simply a lot longer to search before the problem is located. Sometimes you even have to call the manufacturer, which increases the waiting times.

Madhouse in the summer

There is also a storm at Salomo Bikes in Medemblik. “We now have a waiting period of one week,” they say on the phone. There is no time for more explanation, because it is simply too busy.

According to Wouter of bicycle maker Van der Linden in Weesp, we are at a tipping point. The waiting times here have now risen to a month. According to Wouter, people are still used to the fact that you just walk into the bicycle repair shop and have your bicycle back a few hours later. “But that’s really in the past.”

“The customer has to get used to having to make an appointment in advance,” he explains. Just like with the garage or the plasterer, for example. “I’ve been in the business for 25 years and it really feels like a tipping point.”

According to Erik it will only get busier in the coming weeks. So be there on time if you want to give your bike another service. “Because in the summer it gets crazy.”