United States - European Commission Urban Freight Twinning Initiative: Compendium of Project Summaries, Volume II
Overview of 2018-2019 International Urban Freight Roundtables
| Research | Metro Plans | Policy | United States |
UPS E-Trike Pilot Project
The Urban Freight Lab (UFL) includes private partners such as UPS, which is exploring the use of electric trikes to deliver in dense urban locations with limited mobility or large vehicle access. The pilot project proposed includes a prototype hub/spoke system which can theoretically remove a truck from operation and replace it with a single e-trike delivery vehicle.
UPS is piloting a modular e-trike system in Seattle to be evaluated in conjunction with the Seattle DOT and University of Washington Urban Freight Lab.
Source: Seattle DOT.
Project Types
Research, Metropolitan Plan, Pilot.
Period of Performance
November 2018 - November 2019.
Project Site
Seattle, Washington, USA.
Contact
Christopher Eaves
Senior Civil Engineer - Freight Program
Seattle Department of Transportation
Seattle, Washington
Christopher.Eaves@seattle.gov
(206) 684-4524
Topics Addressed
- Air quality/environment.
- Curbside delivery.
- Economic competitiveness.
- Energy consumption.
- Land use interaction.
- Last mile delivery.
- Livability/quality of life.
- Logistics/distribution.
- Mobility/congestion.
- Safety.
- Supply chains.
- Other: equity.
Expected Outcomes
The pilot project has been approved by the Mayor's Office. A project-launch press event was held on October 25, 2017 to highlight the pilot and its possible outcomes. The University of Washington has received permission to proceed with data collection and the UFL is on call to review the pilot project and evaluate its efficacy and any potential modal conflict issues. Initial outreach had concluded. The project was viewed so positively by the public that promotional shots had to be extended to allow passers-by the chance to take pictures with the UPS e-trike and driver.
Stakeholder Involvement
Seattle Public Utilities is convening Food Rescue Lab meetings. Seattle DOT and University of Washington UFL are mapping and evaluating supply chains.
