I have heard about these discussions in many places. Is it safe to ride a fixed gear bike with no hand brake? Well in Germany you have to have 2 brakes on your bike to be allowed to ride on the streets. According to this article a fixed gear rider had won in court. He was accused to have been riding with only a front hand brake and missing back brake. But according to German description a brake is defined as a permanently installed device to reduce the speed of the vehicle. And sure if you have a fixed gear hub you can use that to reduce your speed – therefore it is a brake. But the guy still had to pay money for not having reflectors nor cateyes and was also riding without a bell. I did not know that it was required by law in Germany to have a bell on your bike…
I liked these bikes near my home that seemed to not have been ridden for a long time.
