Can America Build Bikes Again?

 

As a cyclist, I spend a lot of time thinking about bikes—which ones I’d like to buy, where to ride them, and how to maintain them. I’m aware that most American cyclists probably got their bike from Taiwan or China, even if the logo on the frame says Trek, Specialized, or another brand.

A new piece of legislation working its way through Congress aims to change that reality. H.R. 3904 represents an ambitious effort to bring bicycle manufacturing back to American soil. But the road ahead is far longer and more complex than people might realize.

What is H.R. 3904?

Introduced in June 2025 by Representatives Vern Buchanan and Mike Thompson, the U.S. Bicycle Production and Assembly Act is a bipartisan bill designed to jumpstart domestic bicycle manufacturing.

The Core Mechanism:

The bill creates a temporary 10-year duty-free window for bicycle components imported specifically for final assembly or manufacturing of complete bicycles in the United States. Essentially, if you're assembling bikes on U.S. soil, you can import parts without paying tariffs, including the punitive Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods.

Companies must certify to U.S. Customs that imported parts will be used for domestic bicycle assembly and provide documentation upon completion. The bill covers 33 specific component categories.

The Ambitious Goals:

• 2 million bicycles assembled annually in the U.S. within 5 years
• 5 million bicycles assembled annually within 10 years

The Reality Check:

Currently, about 97% of bicycles purchased in the U.S. are manufactured abroad. We're essentially starting from near zero.

The Taiwan Advantage: Five Decades in the Making

To understand the challenge America faces, we need to look at how Taiwan became the undisputed king of bicycle manufacturing. This didn't happen overnight—it's the result of more than 50 years of strategic development.

You can watch a video about Taiwan’s Bicycle Manufacturing Advantage here: https://youtu.be/CjWz-0Zbw0s?si=_2eZulzBpPJofM6Z

Key Time Periods

1970s - The Foundation
When the 1970s oil crisis triggered a cycling boom in America, Taiwanese entrepreneurs seized the opportunity. Both Giant and Merida were founded in 1972. Initially, quality was inconsistent—some U.S. bike shops even posted signs refusing to service Taiwanese bikes. But public institutions stepped in to help manufacturers improve quality control.

1980s - The Knowledge Transfer
As the U.S. dollar fell around 1987, Japanese bicycle manufacturing became too expensive. American brands like Schwinn turned to Taiwan. The BMX boom and mountain bike revolution coincided with TIG welding technology arriving from Japan. Taiwanese factories didn't just copy—they learned, adapted, and improved.

2003 - The A-Team Initiative
Giant and Merida, fierce competitors, formed a collaborative alliance called the A-Team along with component suppliers. These companies realized their real competitors weren't their neighbors in Taichung—they were overseas manufacturers. Their motto: Our goal is not to integrate the supply chain, but to learn.

Today
Taiwan produces over 80% of medium to high-end bicycles globally. The average value of bikes exported from Taiwan is about $813 per unit—roughly eight times that of Chinese-built bikes. In 2022, Taiwan's bicycle industry output hit a record $6.01 billion.

Key Advantages Taiwan Built Over Decades

1. Complete Supply Chain in One Place
Over 900 bicycle-industry companies are clustered in the Taichung-Changhua area. Every single bicycle component can be sourced within a 10-mile radius. Even China doesn't have a single region with Taiwan's complete, integrated supply chain. This proximity creates advantages in speed, flexibility, cost efficiency, and problem-solving.

2. Deep Technical Expertise
Taiwan has mastered production across materials that took decades to perfect: carbon fiber, aluminum alloys with specialized welding techniques, titanium and steel craftsmanship, and advanced processes like anodizing and chemical treatments. Giant pioneered mass-production carbon fiber in 1985.

3. Collaborative Industry Culture
Taiwan's bicycle manufacturers actively collaborate with competitors. The A-Team initiative established a culture where companies share knowledge, understanding that rising together creates a stronger industry.

4. Government Support and Infrastructure
The Taiwanese government has been an active partner through trade promotion, annual trade shows, research and development centers, and investment in cycling infrastructure.

The Harsh Reality: 20-30 Years to Catch Up

Even with H.R. 3904's support, the U.S. is probably 20-30 years away from matching Taiwan's manufacturing ecosystem—and that's if everything goes right. We can look at Taiwan’s growth and examples of manufacturing in the U.S. to come up with an estimated timeline for bicycle manufacturing to be revitalized here.

Years 1-5: Assembly Infrastructure - This is what H.R. 3904 directly targets. It's the easiest part.

• Build or repurpose factory space
• Import and install assembly equipment
• Hire and train workers in basic assembly
• Establish quality control systems 

Years 5-10: Component Manufacturing Begins

• Build specialized manufacturing facilities
• Train workers in specialized manufacturing techniques
• Achieve quality parity with Asian manufacturers

Years 10-20: Advanced Materials and Integration

• Develop carbon fiber manufacturing capacity
• Create integrated supply chains regionally
• Establish R&D capabilities for new materials

Years 20-30: Full Ecosystem Maturity

• Complete supply chain integration
• Innovation leadership
• Global competitiveness without tariff protection

Difficult Obstacles to Overcome

The Tacit Knowledge Problem:

Much of bicycle manufacturing expertise isn't written down. A Taiwanese frame builder might have 20 years of experience and have personally welded 50,000 frames. How do you create that expertise in America when we haven't been manufacturing frames?

The Specialized Equipment Problem:
Manufacturing bicycles requires carbon fiber layup molds, precision welding robots, hydroforming equipment, and specialized testing equipment. Cycling Weekly reported in an article titled, Inside bike design: From open moulds to owning the process, from February 2021 that molds can be really expensive.  They report that a new set of molds come “to around $100,000 for a complete set of sizes.”

The Skills Pipeline Problem:
Taiwan has technical schools teaching bicycle-specific manufacturing, apprenticeship programs, and engineering programs focused on cycling technology. The U.S. would need to build this from scratch. Where do you find teachers with bicycle manufacturing expertise?

The Chicken-and-Egg Dilemma:
Component manufacturers won't set up U.S. factories until there's sufficient demand. Assembly operations won't scale up until component costs are competitive. Brands won't commit until both are proven. Workers won't train until the industry demonstrates stability.

Benefits of Pursuing U.S. Manufacturing

Economic Benefits

Job Creation: Assembly jobs provide accessible entry points, transitioning to higher-skilled manufacturing jobs over time. Economic multiplier: 2-3 additional jobs created for every assembly job.

National Security: Domestic manufacturing capacity reduces foreign dependency for basic transportation equipment.

Supply Chain Benefits

Resilience: At least some bikes can be produced even during international disruptions.
Customization: Domestic assembly makes it easier to offer customized bikes or limited runs.

Environmental Considerations

Reduced Shipping Emissions: Shipping lighter components generates less carbon than shipping complete bikes.

Downsides and Risks

Economic Risks

Higher Costs: American labor costs and new supply chain inefficiencies will likely mean higher bike prices.

Subsidy Dependency: What happens when the 10-year tariff holiday ends? If not competitive by then, we face political pressure to extend subsidies indefinitely.

Risk of Failure: If goals aren't achieved, we'll have spent resources building capacity that sits idle.
Trade and International Relations

Retaliation Risk: Taiwan is a critical geopolitical ally—do we risk that relationship over bicycles?

Supply Chain Disruption: If the U.S. and Europe both push for domestic manufacturing, it could destabilize the global bicycle industry.

Market Reality Checks

The Premium Problem: American consumers have shown they're unwilling to pay significant premiums for Made in USA labels.

Component Dependency: H.R. 3904 focuses on assembly, not component manufacturing. We'd still be dependent on Taiwan for parts—only partial supply chain resilience.

Conclusion: Patience and Perspective

As cyclists, we're familiar with the long view. Building endurance doesn't happen overnight—it takes consistent training over months and years. The same is true for building an industry.

Taiwan's bicycle manufacturing dominance represents one of the great industrial success stories of the late 20th century. The United States is right to admire it and perhaps try to emulate it. But we should do so with clear eyes about the challenges ahead and patience for the decades of work required.

The next time you ride your Taiwan-made bike through Point Defiance Park or along the Foothill Trail, take a moment to appreciate the decades of expertise that made that bike possible. Then ask yourself: are we as a nation willing to make the same kind of long-term commitment? Only time will tell.

For more information about H.R. 3904, visit https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/3904/text