Norwegian Bike Lift: Coming soon to Parsons Street?

Newton Streets and Sidewalks blog reports on a Norwegian technological device to assist bicyclists getting up a steep street: a bike lift. When you come to a steep hill -- a 20% grade, in this case in Trondheim, Norway -- you push the button, set one foot on the device, and a metal plate pushes your foot up the hill while you continue to sit on your bike.

Easier to see in action than describe, so watch it on youtube, of course.

I'm a bicycle commuter between Brighton Center and North Cambridge (except when there's snow around or it's pouring rain). On my nightly return, I bike up the steep hill at Parsons Street south of Arlington Street. Why not install one there?

This Trondheim bicycle lift is undoubtedly a great idea: a mechanical device to help a two-wheeled transportation appliance go uphill. I wonder if anybody has ever patented such a clever machine? Oh, yeah, they did back in 1884: the motorcycle. It was a good idea at the time... maybe someone could revive it.