Dublin, like a lot of big cities, has a lot of delivery riders that are delivering food (and now groceries) by bicycle.
Pretty much all of them are using electric bikes, for a number of reasons:
- They are cheap to buy and run – most of their bikes seem to be mountain bikes that have been retro-fitted with electric bike conversion kits. This makes the cost of entry into this work fairly low. It’s certainly cheaper than buying and running a car or moped.
- They are easy to park – these riders are often collecting from restaurants with limited parking space. With a bicycle it’s much easier to pull up immediately outside the business, collect the food, and be on their way quickly.
- They are great for short distances – nobody is ordering food from across the city. Most deliveries are within a 1-2 kms of their destination.
- They can bypass a lot of the traffic congestion – when the traffic is bad, a bicycle is often the quickest way to get from A to B, as they can easily get past queues of traffic.
Riding in comfort
I’ve noticed as well that the delivery riders also prepare well for the weather and spending a long time in the saddle. They dress well for a long shift in potentially cold and wet weather, with lots of layers and good quality waterproofs. And they also set up their bikes with comfortable saddles, and handlebar mounts for their mobile phones.
You’ll also see many of these delivery riders at this time of year with bar mitts (or ‘pogies’) on their bikes, to keep their hands warm. These aren’t very common sight amongst commuter cyclists, who seem to rely on gloves more. However, I’ve been using my WOBS for the last few weeks, and loving the comfort, warmth and convenience. I suppose the downside of using them is the concern about them being stollen if left on an unattended bike.
