BREMEN, Germany (DPA) — The thought of a collapsible bicycle usually evokes horror, with a dash of bemusement at the weird way the bikes were made so they could fold in the middle, and then some bad memories on top at a ride that was always, at best, rickety.

After a brief heyday, collapsible bicycles largely disappeared ? mercifully, say many. But they are having a revival of sorts in some European metropolises because they are a convenient mode of transport. But today’s models bear little similarity to their predecessors. At the same time, they have yet to achieve the popularity of the first collapsible bicycles.

“The original collapsible bikes had a market share of 35 per cent in 1975,” says Carsten Schabacher of the General German Bicycle Club (ADFC). Sales numbers for the new models are much smaller — a situation that could soon change, according to many biking experts.

“In Germany, 99.9 per cent of people have never heard anything about a collapsible bike,” says Henning Voss, who operates his own company, Firma Voss, in northern Germany. He imports collapsible Brompton bicycles from England.

Interest in these new bicycles is growing fastest in large European cities. ''In London alone, there were 7,000 Brompton bikes sold this year.''

There, a bicycle isn’t just any old tool. They're used by “young, urban people” to “close mobility gaps.”

Better put, people are using the collapsible bicycles to cover the short distance from their train station to their work. That’s possible because today's collapsible bicycles have little to do with their forebears, says Siegfried Neuberger of ZIV, the German Bicycle Industry Association. ''Today, these kinds of bikes aren't a compromise, but a combination.''

That means anyone who wants to fold up their bike doesn't have to make do with a rickety bicycle.

Plus, folding technology has gotten smarter over the years. Nowadays, there are countless brands and models, including Brompton, Moulton, Riese, Mueller and Bike Friday. There are just about as many philosophies related to bike folding.

“Some manufacturers stress being able to fold up quickly,” says Schabacher. Those bikes can be broken down in a few seconds, and unfolded just as quickly, a boon for commuters who want to get into a train quic kly. They’re also good for getting up a flight of stairs quickly.

Other manufacturers focus on compactness. The goal is for a folded bicycle to be about the size of a children's bicycle. That's important for customers who don't have much storage space, or for people who want to keep the bicycle nearby at work or on a commuter train. Schabacher points out that German trains that don't allow bicycles in passenger compartments make exceptions for collapsible bicycles.