Spin, the micromobility unit of Ford Motor Company, is conducting two new e-cargo bike trials in Essex.
In Colchester, working with a new local community-based initiative – the Colchester E-Cargo Bike Delivery Project – Spin is trialling an e-cargo bike delivery service to replace and recharge drained e-scooter batteries. In Chelmsford, meanwhile, it is kicking off a trial of the UK’s first custom-made, ultra-lightweight vehicle for e-scooter operators, the EAV 2Charge, which Spin co-designed with EAV Transport Solutions to provide greener logistics for e-scooter distribution and battery exchanges.
“E-cargo bikes have the potential to deliver e-scooters faster, cut congestion and improve road safety in urban areas when compared to vans,” commented Steve Pyer, UK Country Manager at Spin. “That’s why we have integrated e-cargo bikes into our daily operations when it comes to replacing batteries and moving around e-scooters to meet local demand as it fluctuates throughout the day.”
A recent study, The Promise of Low Carbon Freight – Benefits of cargo bikes in London. August 2021, showed that cargo bikes deliver about 60% faster than vans in urban areas while they also delivered more parcels per hour compared to delivering by vans. By removing vans from the roads, road safety is also expected to improve as vans and heavy goods vehicles were involved in more than 30% of fatal collisions between 2015 and 2017.
Launched earlier this year during lockdown, Colchester E-Cargo Bike Delivery service supports a range of local independent businesses, and now Spin, with a zero-emission delivery service utilising e-cargo bikes.
Through the initial three-month trial, Colchester E-Cargo Bike Delivery Project founder Lee Pugh and his team will replace approximately 20-30 low-charged batteries a day across Colchester and take them to be charged at various points across the town, while they are running deliveries for other customers with four e-cargo bikes. With this trial, Spin aims to reduce the use of its vans on the road to help mitigate congestion in the local area.
In Chelmsford, Spin will be deploying the EAV 2Charge e-cargo bike to help ease traffic and support cleaner air. This ultra-lightweight, emissions-free vehicle was co-designed with Spin to carry spare batteries, tools, replacement parts and hold up to three e-scooters as the operations team pedals them around to meet changing demand across Chelmsford. It is the first custom-made vehicle for an e-scooter operator to be trialled in the UK.
