I would say it as they are optimized to operate within far more limited conditions.
They will by far beat any diamondframe, on a perfectly smooth, wide, flat, clean, dry, level, closed track, with unidirectional and homogeneous traffic.
Outside of that artificial environment, it's not merely ergonomics it's plain utility.
It's like rolling luggage with tiny castors on 4 corners. They are great, on clean flat marble floors.
Setting aside the fact that sometimes a rider simply requires the reclined sitting position, the same way a handcycle is severly limited, but some riders simply need it. It's still limited like a wheelchair, it's just better that than nothing.
And of course if you can change the equation by changing the goal. You can ride across the country towing a trailer and enough camping stuff to live indefinitely on a recumbent. But then you're just trading some of what's useful about a bike for some of what's useful about a car, not actually a better bike.
They will by far beat any diamondframe, on a perfectly smooth, wide, flat, clean, dry, level, closed track, with unidirectional and homogeneous traffic.
Outside of that artificial environment, it's not merely ergonomics it's plain utility.
It's like rolling luggage with tiny castors on 4 corners. They are great, on clean flat marble floors.
Setting aside the fact that sometimes a rider simply requires the reclined sitting position, the same way a handcycle is severly limited, but some riders simply need it. It's still limited like a wheelchair, it's just better that than nothing.
And of course if you can change the equation by changing the goal. You can ride across the country towing a trailer and enough camping stuff to live indefinitely on a recumbent. But then you're just trading some of what's useful about a bike for some of what's useful about a car, not actually a better bike.