A recent study published in August of 2021 looked at the impact of freight transport and its effects on climate change. Noting that freight transport makes up roughly 30% of carbon emissions, with one of the major contributors being Light Good Vehicles (LGVs) or vans. The study, which looked at the benefits of electric bikes in London, found that in the U.K. vans have been the fastest-growing source of road traffic for the last few years. Additionally, since 1986 this growth has been related to order fulfillment in online deliveries.
As more individuals turn to online shopping to become socially distant, the growing number of vans on the road is only expected to worsen. And in 2019, it was noted that vans in the U.K. traveled over 84 billion vehicles kilometers an hour (km/h). Which accounted for an increase of over 106% in the past 25 years. Additionally, the number of registered vans has increased since the ‘90s, with more than 4.1 million vehicles in 2019, and 58% businesses-owned. However, businesses are finding alternative ways to quickly fulfill orders and deliveries. Especially in cities like London, where e-cargo bikes deliver at least half faster compared to the speed of a traditional delivery van.
In the USA, delivery services like UPS, DHL, and FedEx have been using e-cargo bikes for almost 10 years. Furthermore, in the same study comparing cargo bikes and vans, it was found that the e-bikes traveled an average of 11 hours less in their daily travel time and had an average of 7 drop-offs per hour. Which, compared to vans, had an average of 4 per hour. Cargo bikes also traveled at an average speed of 10 km/h whereas vans traveled at a speed of 6.21 km/h.
Lastly, with varying types of cargo bikes and capacities, users can choose whether a front or rear load suits their delivery service best. There is also a range of different e-cargo bikes that can hold contrasting amounts of weight, ranging from 20 to 300 kg. Electric bikes offer a promise of low-carbon freight and can reduce delays brought upon busy city traffic whilst fulfilling the ever-growing demand for online orders.
