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Are there any (long distance) trains in Europe where I can carry a Cargo Bike with me? When saying cargo bike, I am just talking about a conventional long john bike, nothing big (with three wheels or similar)...

Of course I would completely accept to pay some fee for that service. :-)

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    @WeatherVane Since the page you are linking to clearly states that tandems and tricycles are not covered by the term 'bike' as used on that page, I would hardly believe that cargo bikes are so either. Many/most cargo bikes are tricycles anyway. Sep 21, 2021 at 20:40
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    that would depend on the bike, the route, the trains employed on that route, and often even the time of day. E.g. Dutch national railways allow bikes (normal ones, cargo bikes probably not allowed) only during off-peak hours and only on certain trains (other trains simply don't have the facilities).
    – jwenting
    Sep 22, 2021 at 9:09
  • @Tor-EinarJarnbjo they're not explicitly forbidden unlike tandems and trailers on UK trains, but on the majority they wouldn't fit (even my conventional tourer, size XL is a struggle) so you'd have trouble. With the newest trains there's little fallback - if they don't fit the badly designed space, they block the exit doors. If you've got a child with you and a long way to go you might get some sympathy, but otherwise probably not Sep 22, 2021 at 9:27
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    @jwenting Confirming that NS doesn't allow cargo bikes in any train according to their page Sep 23, 2021 at 6:27
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    Long John bikes are not 'bakfietsen' kind of bikes but conventional bikes with a longer rear rack. I guess you might make it work in some places, not in others.
    – Willeke
    Sep 23, 2021 at 9:44

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I am not sure if your question is too broad for this format or are you really just looking for any arbitrary train where you can bring a cargo bike?

If that is your question, you can at least do it on some ÖBB trains (Austrian Railways). Not as a regular bike, but as cargo or oversized luggage in trains which still have luggage wagons or designated luggage compartments. You can't book the ticket online, but have to call ÖBB customer service or go to a ticket counter to make a reservation.

Even if cargo bikes often exceed the allowed size of bikes transported in trains, I would assume that all trains still running with luggage cars allow cargo bikes to be brought under the same conditions as any other oversized luggage.

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Complementing Tor-Einar's answer, NS International (the international service of Dutch national railways) has a very neat summary on the rules to carry bikes within the different carriers for Belgium, France, Germany and Austria here. The rules for domestic service are here (Dutch only)

A quick summary below - unless mentioned, this is for taking a bike as a bike, not as oversized luggage.

  • Dutch domestic service: cargo bikes ("bakfietsen") are not allowed
  • Intercity Brussels: cargo bikes are allowed with a supplementary ticket of 12 euros per single journey, and they charge an extra reservation fee of 4 euros if you want to take it in July or August (this has to be done on a service desk or by phone). Note that you may NOT carry luggage strapped to the bike and some parts of the trip don't allow bikes either
  • Thalys: it needs to be disassembled and packed into a case of max 135 x 85 x 30 cm
  • TGV: front wheel needs to be dismantled and bike needs to be covered with a slip cover, max dimensions 120 x 90 cm
  • Eurostar: no bikes allowed
  • ICE: must be disassembled and packed as luggage, max 120 x 90 cm (lxw). Cargo bikes not allowed in the Intercity Berlin
  • ÖBB Nightjet (Amsterdam to Vienna, Munich, Innsbruck): after April 2022, you may take a bike if it is disassembled and packed in a case of 85 x 85 cm
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    (+1) I would add that for some domestic Dutch and German trains (sprinters, IC Berlin), the ban is a matter of policy but there is often a bike compartment. In a TGV or Thalys by contrast, you would struggle to fit even a single regular — not cargo — bike anywhere.
    – Relaxed
    Sep 23, 2021 at 8:28
  • @Relaxed - good point. ICE even allows tandems or an empty, disconnected bike trailer Sep 23, 2021 at 8:35
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    I just followed the link, note that IC Berlin is not an ICE but a more traditional train with refurbished standard coaches rather than ICE trainsets.
    – Relaxed
    Sep 23, 2021 at 8:44
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    And note that Long John bikes are not 'bakfietsen' and might be allowed where bakfietsen are not.
    – Willeke
    Sep 23, 2021 at 10:06
  • @Willeke Are you thinking bakfietsen = Babboe? Because if you google up "long john fiets kopen" all of the listed bikes that look like long johns are also described as bakfietsen by all shops Sep 24, 2021 at 6:55

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