Amazon is launching a fleet of e-cargo bikes and a team of pedestrian deliveries to replace thousands of delivery vans on London’s roads.
The online retailer is opening its first ‘micromobility’ center in Hackney, east London, which – along with its existing fleet of electric vehicles – will contribute to 5 million deliveries a year in around a tenth of the postcode areas in the ultra-low emissions in the capital. The bikes will be operated by various partner companies, not Amazon directly, of course.
Amazon is planning more such delivery centers in the UK this year as part of its efforts to reduce carbon emissions. The company was listed as a partner for a cargo bike and pedestrian delivery hub at the City of London’s London Wall car park in 2020, but this project has yet to materialise.
John Bumphrey, Amazon’s UK manager, said: “Amazon is moving towards a zero-carbon global future. One of the ways we do this is by transforming our transport networks. Our new e-cargo bikes, walkers and growing electric vehicle delivery fleet will help us make more deliveries to zero-emission customers than ever before across London and the UK in the coming months.”
A new electronic cargo bike is moving around the capital. Photo: John Nguyen/Pennsylvania
Cllr Mete Coban, Hackney Council’s member for environment and transport, welcomed the plan. “Tackling emissions from transport is key if we are to reach net zero. We’re really pleased to have worked with Amazon to support them in taking traditional vans off the streets and replacing them with electric cargo bikes. This will help reduce emissions and improve air quality for the people of Hackney and beyond,” Coban said.
Amazon’s move comes as window cleaners, milk and beer purveyors, plumbers and DJs get on their bikes as a result of UK government incentives, new infrastructure and promises to reduce businesses’ carbon footprint.
About 2,000 cargo bikes were sold in the UK for commercial use in 2020, according to the Bicycle Association, and a similar number were sold for use by families and individuals. This number is expected to have increased last year.
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Dedicated delivery services such as Pedal Me and Velocious have expanded rapidly during the pandemic, with one service, Zedify, setting up 10 mini-hubs on abandoned sites outside cities to make thousands of zero-emission deliveries in every city every day.
Bumphrey said Amazon will also install more than 30,000 solar panels at its facilities in Manchester, Coalville, Haydock Green, Wakefield, Bristol and Milton Keynes by the end of this year.
The company has confirmed 18 solar projects at its existing UK sites this year and plans to double the number of projects by 2024.
These projects come alongside an addition to a wind farm on the Kintyre Peninsula in Scotland and four more planned, including at Kennoxhead in South Lanarkshire.
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