Is it Possible to Install Brakes on an Inline Bicycle Trailer?

Nearly anything is possible when it comes to modifying bicycles and the accessories and components that go along with them, however, some modifications simply don't make sense and can actually cause a malfunction with your bike or worse--an injury. Installing a brake on your bike trailer may sound like a good idea, but there's probably a reason why trailer manufacturers don't make trailers with brakes.

  1. No Trailer Brake Needed

    • Yes, it would be possible to install brakes on a bike trailer, but it's important to understand why bike trailers don't come with brakes pre-installed to begin with.

      Tow-behind bike trailers or inline bike trailers are made to be firmly attached to either the rear hub or seat post of bicycles. They generally have two wheels and the front of the trailer is suspended in the air and held up by the hitch part of the trailer. This design is consistent with different manufacturers because it's safe and stable when the trailer is used for its intended purpose.

      Bike trailers are most commonly used for towing children, animals or extra gear and are not meant to be used at high speeds or for sports like downhill mountain biking. B.O.B. is a company that makes trailers for mountain biking, but the purpose of these trailers is to carry extra gear and are not intended for transporting children or animals. The B.O.B. trailers are about as rugged a trailer as you will find, and they, too, don't have brakes of any kind.

      A bicycle can be set up for brakes in only a few different ways, but when you think about towing a trailer with a bike, the only two types of bikes capable of doing this are mountain bikes and road bikes because of the ability to change gears and brake effectively. That's not saying you can't tow a trailer with a different type of bike, but it's rare for that to be the case.

      Both mountain and road bikes have front and rear brakes mounted as levers on the handlebars and are activated by pulling the brake levers, which activate a cable or hydraulic fluid and close a caliper that uses resistance to slow the speed of the wheels. The front and rear brakes are meant to be used in conjunction with each other to balance out the bike when stopping.

      Now, lets say you successfully installed a brake on your trailer and you were riding along and needed to come to a quick stop. Keep in mind that your bike now has three brake levers because it's impossible to install a coaster brake on a geared bicycle. Since you most likely don't have a third hand, what levers do you grab? Probably the two that are meant to stop your bike, and not the makeshift one you so cleverly installed yourself on the rim of your trailer. If you chose to grab your front brake and the trailer brake that probably isn't mounted on your handlebars, it would either send you over the handlebars or veer your bike abruptly to whichever side of the road or trail your trailer brake is mounted on because it would only stop one of your trailer wheels from spinning.

      Bicycle brakes these days are extremely powerful and bike trailers are made well---there's really no reason why a well-built bike, towing a well-built trailer, would need a not-so-well-built third brake.