• Locally emission-free parcel delivery by TRIPL in Berlin, Hamburg and Cologne

• Significant efficiency benefits in city-centre operations

• Combined with urban micro-depots in the delivery area

 Aschaffenburg, 5 June 2018 – In city centres DPD Germany is expanding its fleet of alternative delivery vehicles: in Berlin, Hamburg and Cologne the company is using eight fully-electric tricycles for parcel delivery. The so-called TRIPL from Danish manufacturer EWII are locally emission-free and make delivery in metropolitan areas much more efficient. While conventional vehicles constantly need to look for suitable parking spaces or stopping zones in the city centre, TRIPL scooters can usually drive right up to the front door without any problems. This saves both time and driving distances while reducing inner-city traffic.

"Delivery in the city centre is one of the biggest challenges for parcel services like DPD" 

Gerd Seber, Group Manager Sustainability & Innovation at DPD Germany 

 "Delivery in the city centre is one of the biggest challenges for parcel services like DPD," explains Gerd Seber, Group Manager Sustainability & Innovation at DPD Germany. "While parcel volumes are growing rapidly, inner-city traffic is also growing. This is where our TRIPLs can help, because they make much faster progress on narrow and congested inner-city streets than our conventional delivery vans. The emission-free electric drive of the TRIPL not only reduces traffic but also helps to conserve the environment".

In Berlin, Hamburg and Cologne, DPD is using the TRIPL on inner-city delivery rounds with a high stop density, where only one or two parcels are delivered per stop. This is particularly the case for parcels to private consignees, who generally also receive smaller packages than business consignees. The TRIPL can make more stops per hour in tight urban spaces than a conventional van and really comes into its own when there are only short distances between stops.

Due to its compact size and the locally emission-free electric drive, the TRIPL is also suitable for parcel delivery where there are access restrictions for conventional vans - for example in pedestrian zones or other traffic-restricted areas. In future the TRIPLs could also be helpful within the context of imminent driving bans in the city centre. However, the TRIPL is not viable as a complete replacement for conventional vans, as its range and transport volume limitations mean that it can only be used for selected, particularly suitable delivery routes.

The charging capacity of the TRIPL battery is sufficient for urban delivery rounds of 80-100 km, while its maximum speed is 45 km/h. The transport volume of the TRIPL amounts to 200 kg and 750 litres, so that up to 50 smallish parcels can fit under the prominent bonnet of the electric tricycle. During a delivery round the TRIPL delivery driver may have to load up the tricycle with parcels several times. For this purpose the TRIPL either docks with a conventional van or loads up with parcels again at a micro-depot. Micro-depots are small trans-shipment points located directly in the urban delivery area. They are supplied with parcels in the morning by truck or van, while distribution in the delivery area is then carried out by smaller vehicles - for example by transport bikes or nowadays with the TRIPL.

 

TRIPLs, transport bikes and more: emission-free parcel delivery in the city centre

DPD relies on a mix of different concepts and vehicles to enable emission-free local parcel deliveries in the inner city. For example, the company is currently significantly expanding its deliveries by transport bike, which is already in use in Hamburg, Heilbronn and Nuremberg. The transport bike service will start in Berlin during the next few days, with further cities such as Munich, Stuttgart, Ludwigsburg and Rostock to follow in the course of the year. The use of electrically assisted transport bikes involves a prior analysis of suitable delivery areas, as well as the development of an individual logistics concept for the individual city. As a rule, the transport bikes have to be supplied by centrally located micro-depots. Gerd Seber, Group Manager Sustainability & Innovation at DPD Germany, explains: "The search for suitable and affordable space in the city centre represents a decisive obstacle to the use of transport bikes and other small vehicles. We would like even more support from cities and municipalities in this respect. We hope that positive examples like those in Nuremberg, Berlin or Rostock will find more imitators."

DPD is also testing pre-production models of the VW e-Crafter in Hamburg, Berlin and Stuttgart. The VW e-Crafter is the first fully electric model in DPD's preferred vehicle class. The van's lithium-ion battery is fully integrated in the underbody, so that the Crafter's 10.7 cubic meter load volume can be fully utilised. Depending on the version, the maximum payload is between 1.0 and 1.75 tonnes. The vehicle thus has all the prerequisites for serving suitable delivery routes in urban areas with similar productivity to conventional vehicles - even for delivery to business consignees who receive significantly more parcels per stop than private consumers.

 

Climate-neutral parcel transport for everyone - at no extra cost to customers

As part of DrivingChange™, its group-wide sustainability programme, DPDgroup has undertaken to provide carbon-neutral transport of all parcels for every customer - at no additional cost. To this end DPDgroup relies on interaction among three interlocking principles: measuring, reducing and offsetting. DPDgroup is the world leader in the voluntary offsetting of emissions which are harmful to the environment. In 2017 alone, a quantity of 912,731 tonnes of CO2 equivalents was offset by DPDgroup. DPDgroup is thus responsible for almost 5% of total voluntarily offset CO2 emissions in Europe. At the same time the company's CO2 emissions per parcel are falling continuously. The goal of reducing emissions per parcel by 10 percent on their 2013 level was achieved as long ago as 2016.