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@Established
Having ridden both trikes and long-johns on a regular basis the long-johns win hands down.
Trikes are great for short distance, light traffic and minimal hills, big cargo box is great for kids and unusual sized loads. But as Bill mentioned they are much slower and far less stable at speed and putting it up on two wheels unexpectedly on a corner can be hair-raising. Also I found myself stuck in traffic due to the width and because the bike doesn't lean cambered roads suck, especially as the Christiania seat tube flexes a lot.
2-wheels or Long-Johns. While they look less stable in fact the opposite is true. Having ridden the Bullitt, Long-John and CETMA bikes they all handle well under load. Weight is carried low so if anything they get easier to ride as you load them up. They are far quicker than the trikes in fact unloaded I've found both the CETMA and Bullitt are as quick as most bikes on the road and just as easy to get through traffic.
Negatives - The length can be an issue for storage and then there's the price.
On the issue of flex. The steel Long-John style bikes flex quite a lot and while it makes for a slightly spongy ride when loaded I've never found it much of an issue. The Bullitt is a very stiff frame as it has to be being an Alu frame. It makes it fast and lively but when light potholes and bumps can be pretty tiring. The steel frames soften the road out a bit and if you're carrying kids its an advantage.
It all comes down to what you want the bike for. Short local trips, kids to school and shopping then trikes are great. But for longer distances, heavier traffic or a bike that you'll also use to commute then the 2 wheels win hands down.
For me bike weight is one of the main factors in choosing a cargo bike. The cheaper they are the heavier they get. A 45kg+ bike is fine on the flat but hills are a killer.
My advise is to try them both, in London Velorution rent the Christiania trikes by the day. The two wheeled bikes are little harder to find but I have a few that you can always come and ride