There are many things to love about an Urban Arrow Family Cargo Bike — I love the upright riding style, I can haul so many things and people —  it’s an all weather, year-round mobility device, and we’ve done over 3,000 happy miles in a year.

One thing I don’t love is the Urban Arrow issued front bench.

I leave my rain canopy up from October to April, so kids can’t use the bench for half of the year. Even with the newer design of the rain canopy, they’re both way too tall to fit their heads comfortably. For the summer months, when the rain canopy is off, I installed a three point harness, but because the back is so low the straps constantly fell off their shoulders, even with a chest clip.

I honestly don’t even really understand why they sell it with the issued seat belt. It does very little for kids as you can see how it will hit a seated child mid-thigh. The seat also costs nearly $300 so for something with such a hefty price tag, I would expect it to be more functional.

My kids are currently 6 and 7.5. They can still fit side by side on the forward facing bench, but I like the option of putting them on opposite sides. Especially in the winter when they’re wearing a lot of gear and their bodies are much bigger with all of the puffy layers. I wondering if I could use things I already had on hand to come up with a better solution — and I did!

I already had a spare Urban Arrow three point harness from when I installed it on the UA issued front bench. I added a bit of length to the crotch strap (couldn’t there be a better name for that?) by sewing on about 8 inches of webbing folded in half. I used a 9ft cargo strap and wrapped it once around the cargo bed of the bike before sliding it through the lengthened crotch strap.

I put both harness shoulder straps through one bolt of the front frame.

I also added half of a chest clip strap to keep the straps together. This may very well be unnecessary, but because I had issues with the straps falling off their shoulders before I decided to put this on in advance so I wouldn’t have to remove the bolt again.

I tried this at first with one yoga block blacked horizontally, but it was a bit small so I put two vertically.

I also added another chest clip (light gray, barely visible).

Of course, since they’re seated lower, more of their leg is forced out in front of them so the foot well is more cramped than when they were sitting opposite on the two UA benches. But they like being able to lean back fully against the frame of the bike and this is a good solution for us for the 6 months of the year that we ride with the canopy.

I may leave this on year round, as I do like that their bodies are more protected when they sit lower, but we shall see.