TL;DW: Vox details all the reasons why a large fraction, if not a majority, of urban deliveries can and should be delivered by cargo e-bikes instead of delivery vans.
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I think delivery trucks are probably still the better option for most packages when they are properly utilized, which they obviously aren’t being if the statistics given are accurate. It’s mass transit for packages. The ineffecciencies probably just come from the overarching problem of there being too many cars on the road. Without that, it becomes a lot more efficient to transport hundreds of packages at once in one truck than have dozens of bikes carry the same load, especially over an entire city. Anything that does need to be delivered quickly should be done by bike, but with proper logistics, delivery trucks actually are more space efficient.
I’d also honestly love to see cargo trams like this:
If we had waaaay fewer cars and if we restored the dense streetcar networks of yore, this could be a feasible option for delivering goods to larger stores (e.g., grocery stores) and to neighborhood cargo hubs, where people could pick up packages directly, or neighborhood electric delivery vehicles and cargo bikes could deliver to the local neighborhood from.
The fact they’re on rails means they’re vastly more predictable in their movement (safer for pedestrians and cyclists), and the fact they have overhead wires means no diesel and no batteries.
Yes. Some solutions here are engine bad, human body good. My city delivered bikes to people that used carriage for transporting recycling material. If it wasn’t the city hall incentive and extra money in order to the change to be made, these people would starve themselves. They need to make physical effort all around town gathering materials and be in a position that they wouldn’t be able to carry the weight if they had a carriage. Thankfully, some mayor had good intentions with the people and the horses. Now take that into picture with how > distribution centers work, how much online shopping a town makes and how much a person would need to ride and carry weight, with sun, rain, etc. Just insane, dude.
I think it’s important to point out that the video states that vans contribute to a big chunk of vehicle CO2 emissions. What they didn’t really care to touch on is the fact that probably less than 1/3 of those vehicles are being used for actual package delivery
