To the sacrosanct favorite van of the craftsman, the Bordeaux plumber Jean-François Morlon prefers his red bicycle with electric assistance equipped with a large white trunk. “Because it’s simpler, because I don’t have to worry about parking, insurance or traffic jams,” he argues. We see more and more these cargo bikes in our streets. The Minister of Ecological Transition Barbara Pompili, who this Monday will be visiting Marseille (Bouches-du-Rhône) in the Synchronicity bicycle delivery platform plans, according to our information, to present her “cycling plan” there. logistics ”as a new means of cleaning up the air in our cities. 12 million public money is already on the table.
“Internet orders are not just a click away. Behind there is a whole chain; however, deliveries represent 25% of carbon-intensive trips in city centers, and 30% of greenhouse gas emissions. You have to trim the fat and quickly! »Pleads Maxime Ducoulombier, co-founder of Synchronicity.
The plan provides in all metropolitan areas with low emission zones (ZFE), which impose traffic restrictions on old diesels or the most polluting vehicles, a “cargo bike boost”. In fact, a subsidy may be paid for each package delivered by bicycle. “The idea is not to put cyclo-logistics on a drip but to prime the pump” explains Quitterie Chapron, in charge of setting this device, which has been tested since last year in four territories, to music (Angers, Reims, Paris Est Marne et bois, Grenoble). “If it works well, the device is intended to be renewed, as was the case for the bicycle aid (Editor’s note: check to repair our old biclous), renewed twice. The envelope has increased from 20 to 80 million euros, ”we promise the Ministry of Ecological Transition.
And then politically, this aid is a way of swallowing the pill of low emission zones (ZFE), which will certainly gradually help to reduce pollution, but which are already making a number of professionals squeal who will no longer be able to enter the sector. heart of the cities with their “jacks”. “The idea is to find employment opportunities and change mentalities”, continues the ministry. Forgotten the factor of “Fête de fête” by Jacques Tati, with its two saddlebags, a cargo bike can carry 3 m3 and 250 kg of load.
Camped on his little red queen Jean-François Morlon confirms: “No need for a vehicle that is 1.5 tonnes empty and all my equipment to unblock the sinks! All it takes is a little organization ”. On the delivery side, the cargo bike “is not cool, it performs well for the last kilometer and even the last meter”, insists Maxime Ducoulombier. Thus a ragged truck takes 7 minutes to unload. During this time a delivery man in the saddle stopped at the foot of the building and had time to do kilometers.
The bike conversion premium, but how much?
In the streets, we can see this phenomenon of cargo bikes. In 2020, says Union Sport et Cycles, sales have more than tripled (+ 354%). In Bordeaux (Gironde), seven years ago, there were more than a hundred craftsmen on the fingers of one hand. To support this movement, loans at preferential rates such as vehicle loans to test the different models are also planned.
Because these two-wheeled tricycles, often electric, cost a few thousand euros. “6000 to buy for mine, estimates our plumber from Gironde, but after a few hundred euros are enough for maintenance and barely a few euros per month for electricity. “To swap its old polluting utility against this machine that plays with slowdowns,” the bicycle conversion bonus “was included in extremis in the Climate law. “This bonus is very good. But how much will it amount to? 2,500 euros would be reasonable, ”calculates Olivier Schneider, the boss of the Federation of Bicycle Users (FUB).
Another lock to be blown up is the infrastructure. To generalize the use of these zero-emission machines, we need passable bicycle lanes, parking spaces, and suitable logistics platforms. In Marseille, a private company has allowed Synchronicity, which brings together bicycle delivery men, to set up in a vacant ground floor on Boulevard des Dames, in the city center. This is a prerequisite because, for this last kilometer without pollution, it is impossible to leave huge and inexpensive hangars in the far outskirts!
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