A six-month micro logistics hub trial has gone live in Wandsworth, supporting a switch to zero-emission last-mile deliveries in the London borough.

Delivery Mates will use electric vehicles and cargo bikes for zero-emission last-mile deliveries

Launched by Cross River Partnership (CRP), a non-profit partnership organisation, it’s being funded by Defra in partnership with the borough.

The hub has been created by sustainable logistics experts at Decarbon Logistics Solutions in partnership with APCOA Parking UK and is located at the Southside Shopping Centre car park.

Sustainable final-mile courier Delivery Mates has been selected to operate daily from the 900 sq ft site following a competitive tender process. The trial will enable the company to extend its same-day, next-day and on-demand parcel delivery service to residents and businesses, using electric vehicles and cargo bikes.

Parcels will be received into the hub from an electric delivery vehicle before being sorted into delivery routes, loaded and distributed by e-cargo bikes in the surrounding area. Deliveries will also operate to the London boroughs of Richmond upon Thames and Merton across the tri-borough area.

The scheme is expected to achieve similar emissions savings as CRP’s previous micro logistics hub trial in Pimlico. Over four months of operation, the e-cargo bikes operating from the Pimlico hub travelled 5,827 miles, which led to a total emissions reduction of 1,613kg of CO2, 6,388g of NOx and 105g of PM2.5 particulates when compared to conventional van deliveries.

Such schemes also cut delivery times too; researchers at the University of Westminster used GPS data to compare routes taken by cargo bikes in London with routes that vans would have to take to deliver the same parcels. Results show that services provided by cargo bikes in London are 1.61 times faster than that performed by van.

CRP will share key insights from the Wandsworth trial every month and publish the full findings in a final report.

Councillor Judi Gasser, cabinet member for environment at Wandsworth Council, said: “We are determined to clean up Wandsworth’s air and reduce carbon emissions, so we are delighted to be part of this trial. We know that deliveries contribute to air pollution and we already work with local businesses to help them find cleaner solutions. Our new Air Quality Action Plan sets ambitious targets to clean up the air, improve people’s health and tackle climate change. The micro logistics hub will enable more businesses to switch to low-emission last-mile deliveries and help us meet these targets.”

The scheme makes use of the APCOA car park’s 24/7 access, security patrols, CCTV, 4G WiFi signal, power supply and welfare facilities, which are located in the shopping centre. Loading and unloading takes place within the hub space to ensure noise levels are kept to a minimum and avoid disturbing other Apcoa car park customers.

Paul McCormack, chief executive officer at Decarbon Logistics Solutions, said: “This site at Wandsworth is another great example of how we can repurpose existing real estate for final-mile logistics and benefit the local community. Customers are provided the same quality delivery services but using only walkers, cargo bikes or electric vehicles. It’s also a great opportunity for a landlord to earn additional revenue, especially if they have underutilised properties suitable for these types of operations.”

The trial will run for six months until February 2024.

Amazon has also launched a new delivery hub of its own. Its new site has gone live in Baillieston in Glasgow and will enable hundreds of thousands of packages to be delivered across the city by electric cargo bikes.