Last-mile deliveries by cargo bikes plan for Reading roads

By PHIL CREIGHTON news@rdg.today

CARGO bikes could be a familiar sight on Reading’s streets from next year, as a company aims to reduce pollution and cut costs.

Pedal and Post currently operates in Oxford, and is eyeing its Thames Valley neighbour for its expansion plans.

It says that if delivery companies switched to using cargo bikes instead of diesel vans for the first and last mile of deliveries, it would save the NHS and other government services more than £4bn by reducing the costs of congestion and air pollution.

And it says businesses could benefit from quicker deliveries at a lower cost to their profits and the environment.

It has launched a £500,000 crowdfunding campaign on ethical platform Ethex to support its expansion plan.

It comes as research from the Department for Transport has found that a third of all urban deliveries could be done by cargo bikes or ecargo bikes, while a report looking at the impact of van pollution by researchers at Just Economics found that the hidden social and environmental costs associated with diesel vans total £2.46 billion in London alone. If a third of those costs were saved from switching to zero emissions cargo bikes, the savings in health and

1 2 environmental would be £4.25 billion across England.

The costs are derived from savings from reduced congestion, less air pollution, better health outcomes for riders, and fewer accidents and greenhouse gas emissions from switching from diesel vans to cargo bikes.

Chris Benton, the CEO of Pedal and Post, said: “We want to support Reading to join the Cargo bike revolution. The potential to clean up our air and grow the UK economy is huge. Pollution from diesel van deliveries costs the NHS nearly £25,000 across the lifetime of the van, compared to around £150 for an electric cargo bike.

“We know that cargo bikes can deliver more parcels per hour than the average van, and produce 92% less greenhouse gas emissions per delivery, so it is a no-brainer to make the switch.”

The company was launched 10 years ago and delivers 1,000 parcels a day across the city, employing 23 people. It works with established delivery companies such as DPD, Yodel and Riverford to handle their smaller packages.

It says this saves 100,000 van miles every year as their cargo bike couriers navigate Oxford’s medieval streets.

In the coming five years, the company plans to increase its revenues to £5.5m, create 140 jobs, increase the number of parcels delivered to 8,000 a day and save 400 tonnes of CO2 emissions.

Jamie Hartzell, chair of Pedal and Post, said: “The potential market here is huge. We know that internet retail sales grew by 47% in 2020. But while getting goods delivered to your home at a click of a button is easy and time saving at a time when we are all under pressure, it comes at a significant cost to our health and the environment.

“Electric cargo bikes are a crucial part of the solution to speed up deliveries and make our air safer to breathe.”

WE BUILD BRANDS beaconagency.co.uk

Step forward for Metropolitan homes

PLANS to build 620 homes on the site of the former Royal Mail sorting office in Reading have been approved.

The Reading Metropolitan is on in Caversham Road, next to a retail park.

At the end of March last year, Reading Borough Council’s planning committee approved the development subject to a Section 106 legal agreement being agreed.

If the developers Hermes Property Unit Trust failed to do that, the project would have been refused.

This agreement has now been signed, and the developers can submit a reserved matters application providing details of how it will look.

To view the application, search for application 182252 on Reading Borough Council’s planning website.

Flintstones-themed fancy dress for extreme runners

FANCY dress is encouraged for an extreme run taking place in Earley on Sunday, April 16.

The Saturn Running Yabba Dabba Run is an up-to seven hour endurance challenge, with participants able to choose their length.

The event starts at 9.30am, from the Wokingham Waterside Centre in Thames Valley Park, and the route goes along the Thames Path.

The course is 40% grass, so trail

3 4 shows are recommended especially if there is wet weather in the runup to the event. n For more details, or to book, log on to: www.evententry.co.uk/saturnyabba-dabba-run

There will be a goody bag for participants at the finish line, while medals are awarded to all participants who complete one lap, and special pins are available to those who complete a half-marathon or more.

Mates Rates Comedy Club heading to Reading’s Purple Turtle

Rates Comedy Club is bringing stand-up comedy back to The Purple Turtle with a line-up including headliner Arielle Souma, a French-Ivorian comedian who is described as “hilarious and

The show takes place on Friday, April 21, and will feature up-andcoming comics, as well as seasoned TV performers.

Attendees can expect to be guided by MC Carl Richard, as he sets the stage for a night of laughter and fun.

Advance tickets for the show are priced at £12.50, with early bird tickets available for £9.99.

The Purple Turtle, is in Gun Street, and the laughter starts at 7.30 pm. ID is required to enter The Purple Turtle.