World's First Fully Recyclable Bike Is Also Made From Recycled Plastics

Ever since the early days of the 'Hobby Horse' and 'Boneshaker' prototype bicycles back in the early 1860s, the two-wheeled marvels have continued to innovate and progress as new designers and engineers are always looking to improve upon the world's most efficient means of travel.

However, with trial and error comes wasteful practices, misuse of materials and high carbon footprints. That is, until MTRL.Bike released a version of their fully recyclable bike made from 100% recycled plastic. Wait what? Sounds too good to be true, right?

Like many other significant innovations, this bike is a melding of brilliant minds with a common goal and interest. In this instance, German motion plastics company igus® and Dutch start-up MTRL.Bike has collaborated on the prestigious Red Dot Design Award-winning bike entirely made from recycled plastics.

What To Expect

While the company hasn't released all of the details on its website, they have begun production on the first 100 versions of this all-plastic, fully recyclable urban commuter. As you can see from the images and video, the bike has some metal parts, such as bolts and hydraulic disk brakes. However, the frame, wheels, pedal, etc, are all made from recycled plastic and built in a factory that uses 100% renewable energy in the production process as well.

The MTRL.Bike will come in at a very reasonable 37.5 lbs and will have self-lubricating bearings, a rust-free drivetrain and plastic parts that will never need maintenance. The hope is that this bike will last the user for many more years and require less replacement parts and maintenance than any other bike on the market. But if the bike needs to be scrapped, instead of throwing into the landfill with the thousands of other bikes that reside there, the MTRL.Bike can be recycled or upcycled into another bike.

Expect to pay around $1300USD for one of these bikes, which you can pre-order at their site. We also expect to see both an e-bike version and a kid's run-bike version over the coming years. This frame design looks ideal for integrating some batteries and a motor alongside the belt drive and unique frame design.