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For Delivery Workers in Latin America, Affordable E-Bikes Are a Superpower

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Re: For Delivery Workers in Latin America, Affordable E-Bikes Are a Superpower

#11

Post by anovikov »

nemomarx wrote: post #6
anovikov wrote: post #3

I wonder why is still anyone NOT using e-bikes for delivery. This is the lowest hanging fruit ever. No charging issues (just a normal wall socket is more than enough), no range issues - trips are short and battery can be swapped by a person in seconds to the one that was charging. Almost zero running costs compared to a two-stroke.

up front costs compared to non powered bike maybe?

Compared to non powered bike maybe, but it's only practical in a very limited set of scenarios. I'm comparing to a two stroke moped that's still used by majority of deliverymen down here. These days a two-stroke moped costs about as much as an e-bike and is whole lot more expensive and difficult to maintain.

Only force behind it seems to be the force of tradition. Creepy to see it holding so much control over even very young people who delivery drivers tend to be.

Re: For Delivery Workers in Latin America, Affordable E-Bikes Are a Superpower

#12

Post by sam_lowry_ »

triceratops wrote: post #9
rererereferred wrote: post #4

Small off-topic, I see those boxed backpacks and think of their shoulders. On motorbike the box rests in the back of the seat but here all the weight is in the shoulders. People who have done some mountain hiking knows that the weight of the backpack should be mostly in the waist, thanks to the waist belt (sorry if I don't use the right term, I've done most my hiking in Spanish ;) ). I don't know how weight distribut…

> I've done most my hiking in Spanish That's genuinely impressive, I've done most of my hiking in silence /s I know what you meant though.

Camino.

Re: For Delivery Workers in Latin America, Affordable E-Bikes Are a Superpower

#14

Post by Scoundreller »

rererereferred wrote: post #4

Small off-topic, I see those boxed backpacks and think of their shoulders. On motorbike the box rests in the back of the seat but here all the weight is in the shoulders. People who have done some mountain hiking knows that the weight of the backpack should be mostly in the waist, thanks to the waist belt (sorry if I don't use the right term, I've done most my hiking in Spanish ;) ). I don't know how weight distribut…

But now you’re cutting out all that biological shock absorption.

(Aka: why helmet cams are much smoother than any other bike mount)

Re: For Delivery Workers in Latin America, Affordable E-Bikes Are a Superpower

#15

Post by Fradow »

rererereferred wrote: post #4

Small off-topic, I see those boxed backpacks and think of their shoulders. On motorbike the box rests in the back of the seat but here all the weight is in the shoulders. People who have done some mountain hiking knows that the weight of the backpack should be mostly in the waist, thanks to the waist belt (sorry if I don't use the right term, I've done most my hiking in Spanish ;) ). I don't know how weight distribut…

I can see numerous reasons why you'd want the backpack rather than a box on the bike for food delivery (may not apply for other deliveries):

- no need to fuss when you mount/dismount your bike, your backpack is already on your shoulders. Speed is key.

- the focus is not on carrying capacity, it's on speedy delivery. There's only so much food in their backpack.

- because of the time waiting for orders / going to the restaurant / going back to a hotspot, most of the time the backpack is actually empty.

- a box on the back of a bike costs money.

Re: For Delivery Workers in Latin America, Affordable E-Bikes Are a Superpower

#16

Post by knowitnone »

timewizard wrote: post #7

Food delivery is some of the lowest quality and highest danger work with the least options for matriculating into a better position. This article is written from a very colonial perspective. I wonder if the authors have pondered that.

It's a job and it pays the bills. Nobody is calling it a career.

Re: For Delivery Workers in Latin America, Affordable E-Bikes Are a Superpower

#17

Post by timewizard »

knowitnone wrote: post #16
timewizard wrote: post #7

Food delivery is some of the lowest quality and highest danger work with the least options for matriculating into a better position. This article is written from a very colonial perspective. I wonder if the authors have pondered that.

It's a job and it pays the bills. Nobody is calling it a career.

You read the article, listened to the stories, and looked at the pictures, right? This is obviously the only source of income for many of those people. They're economically trapped and you're just happy to sell them e-bikes and pretend that it materially improved their conditions.

Oh, but it's greenwashing nonsense, so everyone turns off their critical reasoning skills, and pretends it's a secret virtue that they do so. This place has moved so far away from the hacker ethic that it blows my mind. What a pointless set of discussions and a false social pressure to never think beyond the guidelines set out in the article. Oh and you've got a side wide hall monitor to yell at you if you ever do.

Blech.

Re: For Delivery Workers in Latin America, Affordable E-Bikes Are a Superpower

#18

Post by BizarroLand »

timewizard wrote: post #17
knowitnone wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a job and it pays the bills. Nobody is calling it a career.

You read the article, listened to the stories, and looked at the pictures, right? This is obviously the only source of income for many of those people. They're economically trapped and you're just happy to sell them e-bikes and pretend that it materially improved their conditions. Oh, but it's greenwashing nonsense, so everyone turns off their critical reasoning skills, and pretends it's a secret virtue that they do…

It is important to celebrate small victories. Don't take that away from people

Re: For Delivery Workers in Latin America, Affordable E-Bikes Are a Superpower

#19

Post by reaperman »

anovikov wrote: post #3

I wonder why is still anyone NOT using e-bikes for delivery. This is the lowest hanging fruit ever. No charging issues (just a normal wall socket is more than enough), no range issues - trips are short and battery can be swapped by a person in seconds to the one that was charging. Almost zero running costs compared to a two-stroke.

Not all cities are like yours - in Houston, it's reasonably common for a business to offer delivery "anywhere within the inner loop", which is just the smallest of three beltways which circumscribe the city.

The inner loop is 100 sq. miles (260 sq. kilometers). Right now (4:30PM on a Monday) drive times and cycling times are comparable (close enough its not really a deciding factor). But bicycling 6-10 miles for each delivery is a good way to get injured. Very few drivers here have any habit of expecting bicycles. When I bicycled to work, I got hit by a car roughly every other week - and that was just one 2 mile ride per day, not multiple 2-10 mile rides per day.

Re: For Delivery Workers in Latin America, Affordable E-Bikes Are a Superpower

#20

Post by euroderf »

anovikov wrote: post #3

I wonder why is still anyone NOT using e-bikes for delivery. This is the lowest hanging fruit ever. No charging issues (just a normal wall socket is more than enough), no range issues - trips are short and battery can be swapped by a person in seconds to the one that was charging. Almost zero running costs compared to a two-stroke.

> I wonder why is still anyone NOT using e-bikes for delivery.

In Helsinki, delivery (of food) seems to be dominated by larger scooters with flat beds between yoke and seat post/rear fender. Maybe because the food delivery boxes are quite large, maybe because they have lots of insulation for winter use ? Maybe because the fat tires on the scooters are more stable on snow & ice ? Just guessing.

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