Electric cargo bikes rolled out for new Hammersmith Zero-Emission Delivery Service

Hammersmith BID has been awarded £50,000 in funding from Transport for London (TfL) to support the new zero-emissions freight hub, Parcels Not Pollution.

The project aims to reduce traffic, ease congestion and improve air quality in Hammersmith town centre, and will be delivered in partnership with Hammersmith & Fulham Council and e-cargobikes.com, a last-mile delivery service already working with the likes of the Co-op.

The Parcels Not Pollution clean air delivery service launched last week, with local businesses including Kings Mall Shopping Centre, Regus, the Ark building and the Lyric Theatre signed up to use the service.

Reducing the number of freight vehicles on the roads in Hammersmith, particularly at peak times, goods will arrive at the e-cargobikes.com warehouse in Ladbroke Grove and deliveries will be made the same day they are received (so long as they are received by 3pm), with no difference in the service to the customer and no extra delivery cost. A designated Hammersmith driver will service the area from 10am – 6pm, Monday to Friday.

Half the value of household expenditure, around £79 billion, relies strongly on road freight. However, goods vehicle movements in the capital have increased by around 20% since 2010, contributing to poor air quality, congestion and road danger. Many freight movements are made during the morning peak, when there are higher numbers of vulnerable road users. The concept of last mile delivery, alleviating goods vehicle movements particularly in urban areas, has plenty of advocates, not least automotive manufacturers like Ford. DHL has been testing the concept for a number of years and TfL itself has put cash into last-mile delivery, not least in Hammersmith’s Parcels not Pollution.

Patricia Bench, Hammersmith BID Director, said: “We are delighted to have been awarded this funding which will help us achieve our objectives to reduce the number of, and emissions from, freight and goods vehicles in our town centre. We look forward to working together with TfL, Hammersmith & Fulham council and our partners to achieve these goals.”

Emily Herreras-Griffiths, TfL’s Travel Demand Management Programme Director, said: “We’re investing with business groups across London to enable more people to make the switch to cleaner, greener and more efficient ways of moving goods around the capital. Hammersmith BID’s new zero-emission cycle freight service, part-funded by TfL, will help reduce the number of vans and lorries on local streets, particularly at peak hours, making a real difference to local air quality, congestion and road danger.”

Clare Elwes, Co-Founder of e-cargobikes.com, said: “We’re excited to announce the launch of Parcels Not Pollution, working in Partnership with Hammersmith BID and H&F council to ensure the streets of Hammersmith are cleaner, safer and less congested. E-cargobikes.com offer sustainable last mile delivery solutions – if you are considering how your company could join in and reduce its carbon footprint then it’s time to get involved and get in touch – be part of the solution! Pass it on…”