Dublin, Friday 27th November 2020 - As part of its smart urban delivery commitment, DPD Ireland has launched the first of its kind “Green Last Mile” initiative, a new scheme set up to deliver 1,000 parcels per day in Bettystown, Laytown and Drogheda using a double decker bus and ten electric bikes. The CO2 saving is significant as the scheme is replacing ten diesel vans on the road, and at full capacity, can save 550Kg of CO2 emissions each week.
DPD Ireland required an innovative solution to meet increased parcel delivery demand in the lead up to Christmas, coupled with the increased online shopping deliveries due to Covid-19. Through a smart hub-and-spoke model, they have turned a double-decker bus into a mobile depot that deploys ten electric bikes with mini trailers to provide a "green last mile" delivery in the more densely populated areas of the three towns.
The initiative avoids a significant number of motorway miles given the vans would have been driving from the depot to their destination each day. Instead of using ten long-wheelbase Mercedes Sprinters to deliver to the residential areas of these towns, DPD has opted for a depot on wheels, feeding a fleet of electric bikes to deliver parcels to local homes and businesses.
To reduce bus emissions, the company has fitted a SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction) system, the most advanced and effective exhaust gas after-treatment technology available. This filters soot particles from the diesel exhaust and reduces emissions containing harmful air pollutants such as particulates and Nitrogen Oxides. This initiative offers significant reduction in the emissions, noise and congestion in the towns it is operating in.
Chief Executive of DPD Ireland, Des Travers said:
“This project is already having a massive impact on communities in the towns involved. Rather than having diesel vans driving into these urban areas, we are using electric bikes which really improves the delivery experience. It has really grown into a triple-win - it avoids CO2 emissions, it reduces congestion and it allows us to deliver parcels more efficiently. We are looking very closely to see how we can replicate the scheme’s success elsewhere”.
About DPD Ireland
DPD Ireland is part of DPDgroup – the largest international parcel delivery network in Europe. With more than 77,000 delivery experts and a network of more than 46,000 local Pickup points, DPDgroup delivers 5.3 million parcels worldwide each day through the brands DPD, Chronopost, SEUR and BRT.
DPDgroup is the parcel delivery network of GeoPost, which posted revenues of €7.8 billion in 2019. GeoPost is a holding company owned by Le Groupe La Poste.
