Prague’s delivery bike depot named one of Europe’s top three zero-emission environmental projects

The electric cargo bike depot at Florenc in Prague 8 has been named one of Europe’s most environmentally friendly projects. Prague City Hall is to open similar depot at Anděl in September.

The first electric cargo cycle depot for the delivery of parcels around the city center, which opened in Florenc in mid-November 2020, has been named one of the three best projects in the Zero Pollution category in the Eurocities Awards 2021.

Couriers have delivered over 50,000 parcels and covered more than 23,000 kilometers from the Florenc depot. Based on the success, Prague has decided to expand on the pilot project with the second Anděl location, which will allow companies to focus on Prague 5 and its surroundings.

While increased reliance on home delivery had been a trend even before the coronavirus pandemic, it became even more popular in the last year due to several categories of stores being closed due to restrictions. And even now that stores have reopened, many people have come to rely on the convenience of home delivery.

“Therefore, in September we will launch the operation of another bike depot, which we will place by Anděl. Our experience in Prague so far shows that micro-depots in city centers contribute to streamlining logistics so that goods always arrive from the shortest possible distance. In other words, the more depots we have, the better the whole system will work,” he said.

Scheinherr said the city is working with the biggest logistics players in the market on both depots. The city and the private companies see huge potential in this project and realize that efficient logistics is the basis of a healthy city.

“It fits in with our overall vision for transport in the city center, where we are trying to relieve it of emissions, noise, and transit traffic. We have started rolling the modern logistics snowball in Prague, and we will continue to deepen our cooperation,” Scheinherr said.

The sustainability of the project has been recognized by the European Eurocities Awards 2021, where the cycling depot was among the top three projects in the Zero Pollution category. It is competing for the top spot with projects from De Energiecentrale in Ghent, Belgium, and Recyclerie des moulins in Nice, France. The winner will be announced in October.

“I am glad that this solution makes sense for logistics companies, and that together we are looking for a solution to reduce emissions and noise primarily in the dense streets in the center,” he added.

The planned bicycle depot in Prague 5 has a central location that is easily accessible for the vans that will transfer goods there. The new depot will be located directly under the city inner ring road. Couriers can thus easily serve the other side of the river.

Companies using the new Prague 5 depot include many of the same ones using the Florenc depot, as well as companies for which there was no room in Florenc and some completely new applicants.

The new depot will include DoDo, We│Do Cz, Dámejídlo.cz, Zásilkovna, DHL Express, PPL, Velká pecka, and Direct Parcel Distribution. The Anděl depot will approximately double the number of sustainably delivered parcels in Prague using electric cargo bikes.

“For Prague, the use of electric cargo bikes is a huge step toward a sustainable city. I am delighted that we can set an example for other European cities in green city delivery. Another area with potential for sustainable transport and the environment is also rail freight transport, so the city's plans are also focused in this direction," Prague Institute of Planning and Development (IPR Praha) director Ondřej Boháč said.

The cycle depot project is in line with a city logistics study. The complete management and operation of the Florenc cycle depot is the responsibility of the Technical Road Administration (TSK), which will also build a new depot in Prague 5.