CYCLE logistics: Moving goods by bicycle

Achieving concrete reduction in energy used for urban freight transport

By Michael Smith (Veshengro)

As societies face urban congestion, rising fuel costs and increased air and noise pollution, using bicyles to move goods is now being seen a viable transport solution. This is clearly the idea behind CYCLE Logistics, the EU funded project being launched in May 2011.

“All modern sustainable companies and cities will incorporate delivery of goods by bikes in their logistic systems” proclaims Dr. Bernhard Ensink, Secretary General of the European Cyclists’ Federation (ECF), and one of the key partners involved in the project. The CYCLE logistics project will build upon this new trend of moving goods out of trucks and vans and onto bicycles.

Running from May 2011 to 2014 and spanning across 12 countries, this project will draw upon the expertise of local authorities, the private sector, cyclists’ groups, communications experts and energy agencies. With ECF as a main partner of this project, CYCLE logistics will strive to remove unnecessary motorized vehicles from roads by using more bikes to transport goods in city center across Europe.

A clear example of bikes being used as part of every-day business

“Currently, half of all trips in the city are related to the transportation of goods with light goods representing over a third of these trips”, explains ECF Project manager Dr. Randy Rzewnicki, noting that “there’s a huge potential for CYCLE logistics to shift these trips away from motorized vehicles and towards cycling-related solutions”.

Despite the mammoth task ahead of him, Rzewnicki is upbeat: “In Berlin, London, Paris, and many other cities elsewhere it’s happening already for business. Even for those who have the most efficient delivery networks, cycling solutions lead to increased efficiency”.

But, let's face it: this is not a new concept now. Baker's, butcher's, etc., used to do their deliveries around towns, villages and even part of the countryside by “cargo” cycles and the postal service, even in rural areas of the UK, for instance, has been using bicycles until they enlarged the delivery areas too much.

Germany has seen a return of the courier, as in DHL kind of, and also other delivery services, including grocery home deliveries, so I understand, on “cargo” cycles and also in Britain some small ventures have taken up that option once again.

On a larger scale, I should think, as far as Britain is concerned, the talk would be about needing “pilot” projects before, say, local authorities and such would take up this option of bicycle deliveries.

In other countries of Europe, for instance, this is happening and also other alternatives to car and truck are being used and not just “explored” such as horse-drawn dustcarts in a number of areas in France, including, so I understand, some districts of the capital.

According to reports from France the savings are huge in switching from the huge diesel-turbine trucks to horse and cart and even collection speeds do not seem to have suffered.

As far as deliveries in towns and cities are concerned if one considers that, due to the congestion, the traveling speed of a truck may be less than that of a bicycles, especially if cycle paths are available, deliveries by bike might just be rather a viable option, and maybe not just in towns and cities.

© 2011

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Increase in rail and bicycle usage in Britain

By Michael Smith (Veshengro)

According to recent figures rail journeys in the UK have increased tremendously pointing to the fact that people leave the car at home more because of the cost of fuel going up, and up, and up.

Bicycle usage also has risen rather greatly from what I can observe on a daily basis and more and more people seem to join the throng of those riding through our parks on their way to work or from work, or to take the children to school, or to go to the stores.

With the equivalent of US$8 and more for a US gallon of ordinary gasoline this change in choice of mode of transport really is not surprising. What is surprising that not more bikes are about on the commuting trail and the school run or the trip to the stores for the pint of milk or the loaf of bread.

The way people are and have been using the car is not really sustainable and nor has it ever been. We clog up the village and town centers, the roads to and fro, and we pollute the air. Short journeys cause much greater emissions than the loner runs and vehicles idling are the biggest cause of automobile air pollution.

While most readers of this journal will know the facts as to pollution caused by idling cars and such like very well indeed already it is, nevertheless, interesting and, dare I say, encouraging, to see that rail journeys are going up and, as far as I can see, the use of bicycles too is very much on the increase, for commuting as well as for taking the kids to school or for the run to the shops.

Let us just hope – and, those who do, pray – that this increase will not just dissipate again if and when oil and gasoline become cheap again. Not that I, personally, think that this is going to be the case again, ever.

And if it is indeed the case that the era of cheap and abundant oil has come to an end everyone best prepare for a return to mass transport, such as, especially, rail, for the longer journeys and to the use of the bicycle and walking for the shorter journey. Unless, that is, you can afford to keep and maintain (no, not a musket, silly) a horse and cart.

The problem though is that this fact is not, as yet, really sinking in with the majority of the people who still think that they are entitled to a car and to be able to be running it.

I don't know about such entitlements. Even the Constitution of the United States of America does not make mention of any of that. There is no right to have access to cheap gasoline enshrined in that document, not even in any of the many Amendments to said Constitution.

© 2011

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The bicycle: A simple machine with a profound impact

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

The bicycle is such a simple machine that can have such a profound impact on our daily lives, every day. It gives you freedom and not just a "sense of freedom" but real freedom. When you are on your bike there is no email, there are no text messages, no phone calls - unless you insist in answering your cell phone or Blackberry^TM all the time.

Given only half a chance the bicycle could also, once again, have a profound influence on society as a whole, by being the instrument to wean us all off our dependence on oil.

Cycling is a great way to get around. Quicker than walking, less sweaty than running and saves plenty of CO2 versus driving. And as a bonus bikes can zip through traffic, go to nice places where cars don't stand a chance, like the beach, and help you shed loads of weight whilst saving you truck loads of money on parking.

Some areas have proper cycle path, not the pathetic cycle lanes that are part of the road in some towns and cities, especially in London. We need, in Britain and elsewhere, the kind of cycling provisions that are there in places such as the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, France and Denmark.

If we had such proper cycling facilities, such as properly physically segregated bike lanes – even if shared with pedestrians, as in some places – the uptake of cycling to work, to school, to the shops and for general getting about would be much higher than it is.

Around 600,000 Britons already cycle to work. As well as living longer, together they save the same amount of CO2 every quarter of an hour as one car would produce driving around the world, and they get to work faster too. On average cyclists travel at 12-15mph, double the speed of a city car in cross town traffic.

But is speed really such an issue? I don't think so.

The one drawback, and I know that as I am a cyclist and do not drive nor own a car, is when it comes to going to the supermarket for a weekly shop. Carrying all the groceries on a bike can be a little bit of a thing. Panniers do help, as does the use of a large backpack. A trailer could be very useful indeed but then you lose part of the mobility and ease of “parking”.

Having stores closer to where one lives would certainly make it possible to go more than once a week and thus avoid having to carry all that stuff in one go.

Don't own a bike anymore but did have one when you were a kid and would like to get back to it. No need to buy new; there are places were you can buy secondhand and reconditioned, often abandoned, bikes.

As readers know, I rebuild abandoned bicycles myself and turn them into single speed bikes, most of the time, by a simple conversion. The multi-speed bikes are really, in my opinion, overrated and way too difficult, nowadays, to fix for the ordinary punter. Give me a single speed any day. No need to adjust and readjust gears all the time. Bad enough that brakes need having that done rather frequently.

Cycling, to me, is about about freedom, excitement, adventure, nostalgia and most of all deep, true passion for a wonderful two wheeled object. Come and discover it too.

© 2011

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