BQ Member Profile: Harriet Muir

When Harriet Muir returned to Brisbane in 2023, the question looming over her was simple: to buy a car, or not to buy a car?

Like many parents with young children, Harriet faced daily logistics, rising costs of living, and environmental concerns. But rather than sign up for car ownership, she chose to roll with a a solution that looked to make more sense.

“I didn’t really want to buy a car, for different reasons,” Harriet says. “The expense of it, but also I’m pretty environmentally conscious and I just thought, there surely is another way.”

That “other way” turned out to be an electric cargo bike. Inspired by friends who’d recently added one as a second vehicle, Harriet was intrigued – but hesitant. “Although I could see the huge money savings by replacing a car with an eBike, buying one outright was out of reach for me at the time,” Harriet said.

Harriet did some research and found Lug+Carrie, a subscription-based e-bike service. “It was perfect for me. While I was very keen to not have a car and get around by bike, I wasn’t completely convinced that it would be viable. I’ve got two small kids. I thought it was a little bit crazy.”

Crazy or not, the family took the plunge. Two years later, they’re still going strong – still without a car, and still just getting around by bike.

Going car-free with two young children would seem almost impossible for a lot of people. But for Harriet, the surprises have been mostly positive.

“To be honest, there haven’t been as many [challenges] as I thought,” she says. “We live 4kms from the city and there’s really great bike infrastructure – which I honestly had no idea existed until I started riding.”

It wasn’t just the shared paths and bike ways that were a pleasant surprise, Harriet also found the riding was easier than imagined. “It seemed like a pretty weird thing to ride with both my kids on the back, but my confidence surprised me. I wouldn’t call myself a cyclist… but it’s been much easier than I expected. The challenges that I thought might have existed haven’t actually really existed.”

More than just transport, the bike has brought unexpected joy and connection to Harriet’s young children.

“My youngest was eighteen months old when we got the bike and my oldest was four,” she says. “My youngest – one of her first words was bike. In the morning, they used to chant ‘bike, bike, bike!’ and then we’d jump on and ride wherever we were going.”

The benefits for getting around by bike go beyond sustainability and cost savings – Harriet finds that with her kids they interact with their local area in a way that just wouldn’t be possible in a car. “Even if you are going from A to B, there are stop-offs along the way and it’s a lot more engaging for the kids,” Harriet says. “You might stop off and have a look at some turtles… then there’s a playground. You don’t get that in the car when you’re just driving along stuck in traffic.”

Harriet’s growing passion for everyday cycling led her to work in the marketing team at Lug+Carrie. Through that role, she was introduced to Bicycle Queensland – and soon became a member.

“I was really taken by the advocacy work that Bicycle Queensland do,” she says. “Until you’re riding a bike every day, you don’t really think about how important it is to keep cycling at the forefront of all these conversations.”

From protecting and expanding bike infrastructure to promoting safe, accessible options for all riders, Harriet quickly saw how vital BQ’s work was.

“It’s not just maintaining the existing stuff, but investing in new infrastructure. The work Bicycle Queensland do there is super important.”

Despite her optimism, Harriet doesn’t underestimate the challenges facing cycling in Queensland.

“I think the challenge is helping people see that cycling isn’t just for recreation – it’s actually a really viable option for transportation,” she says. “Unfortunately, we’re still a really car-focused country – and particularly city in Brisbane.”

With the city’s population growing and congestion increasing, Harriet sees active transport as a necessary part of the solution. “Brisbane is becoming less liveable because of the traffic problems… I just think the advocacy role is one that needs to be done with discipline. It’s a constant: staying at the forefront, reminding, and growing that voice.”

But Harriet is hopeful. With the Brisbane 2032 Olympics on the horizon, there’s a real opportunity to reshape the city’s priorities.

“I’m feeling optimistic,” she says. “Looking at what happened in Paris and what’s happening in LA for those Olympic Games, I hope that will help active transport be front and centre here in Brisbane.”

“I look at cities around the world where biking is the main form of transport and find it so inspiring… I can see so much potential here as well for Brisbane and Queensland.”

For now, Harriet and her family continue to do what works for their inner-city life. She may not call herself a cyclist, but Harriet is part of a growing community of Queenslanders redefining what everyday transport looks like. And if you hear a couple of tiny voices chanting “bike, bike, bike!” in the morning, you’ll know exactly why.