The main objective of Depot.Bike, is to divert a portion of deliveries being made in the city centre by van or truck to delivery by cargo bike, thus alleviating traffic in the city centre, reducing noise and air pollution, and improving conditions for pedestrians. The project was implemented as a pilot project as  nothing like this had been previously attempted in the Czech Republic. 

A second objective was to foster a movement towards culture change, where bikes are given more respect and visibility on city roads. The goal is that greater visibility will lead to the creation of improved cycling infrastructure in the city, and demonstrate that bikes have their own, rightful place in the vast logistics industry. 

The third objective was to trial this model on a small scale, thus paving the way for additional bike depots throughout the city. 

Depot.Bike functions as a transfer point for goods that are sent from company warehouses on the city outskirts to the storage containers of individual logistics companies at the depot. From here, couriers pick up the goods, load them onto cargo bikes, and then transport them-- with zero emissions-- to recipients in the city centre. Couriers can deliver up to 80 consignments per day from the depot. 

The depot is also intended to serve as a presentation space for new technologies in light electric vehicles. In the future, the depot will be expanded to include a logistics hub, where it will be possible for individuals to drop off or pick up packages, thus also reducing the number of kilometers that the packages must travel by vehicle before they reach their intended recipient. 

Depot.Bike comprises the involvement of many groups across a number of different sectors. 

Prague City Hall is the main coordinator of the City agencies required to take the pilot from concept to reality. 

The project managed early on to secure political support from Petr Hlaváček, First Deputy Mayor for Spatial Development and the Land Use Plan, as well as Adam Scheinherr, Deputy Mayor for Transport. This political support at the highest city level was key to project implementation. 

The Prague Institute of Planning and Development (IPR Prague) developed the initial feasibility study for the depot in 2018, which would go on to form the backbone of the project. IPR Prague also served as an advisory body for the process of plot selection for the project, led the project’s branding and PR campaign, and created the first layout plan of the site. 

The Prague Technical Road Administration (known as Technická správa komunikací hl.m. Prahy, a.s. in Czech) provided a suitable site for the pilot project and  presented a selection of parking areas that they would be willing to turn over to the depot. On May 1st, 2021, this institution took over the management and operation of the bike depot. This institution will also be responsible for building the new depot in Smíchov. 

Ekolo.cz, a Czech e-bike specialist, was brought on board to manage the pilot phase of the project. 

Eight private sector partners signed up to test the functioning of the depot. These eight firms included some of the country’s largest logistics companies, including: Dachser, DHL Express, DPD, GLS, Messenger, PPL, Rohlik. cz (the country‘s largest online grocery), and DoDo Group. These private firms signed up to the pilot of their own volition, and their participation was not subsidised. For logistics companies, the bike depot is one approach to solving some of the logistical issues that they had been facing, including the rapid growth of e-commerce, difficulty finding parking in the city centre, and overall traffic flow.

The initial investment into the project was provided by the Prague Technical Road Administration and included the fencing of the plot for the bike depot, the connection of electricity to the site, and the provision of a shared shipping container that includes toilets, showers, and other basic facilities for the couriers. Total start-up costs were quite minimal: 3.3 million CZK, or approximately 130,000 EUR. 

The land that the depot is situated on is owned by the City of Prague. Discounting the opportunity cost of not using the land for a different purpose, it is essentially being used free of charge. 

The companies make payments to cover the operational costs of the depot, thereby creating a loop that eliminates the need for the city to financially support the project and makes it self-sustaining.

As a result of cooperation between many different sectors, the bike depot project has removed a number of large vans and trucks from the city centre, thus directly reducing air and noise pollution and contributing to the decarbonization of the city. 

Citizens have benefited from the creation of new job opportunities especially for those displaced from other lines of work due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They have also directly benefited from the reduction in the number of deliveries being made by van in the city centre. 

The pilot project has been very successful, the operations at the depot in Florenc will continue indefinitely, despite the pilot having officially come to an end. All the logistics companies that signed on for the pilot will continue using the depot at Florenc for bike deliveries within the city center. Over 40,000 packages have been delivered since the project‘s inception in November 2020, translating to approximately 17,000 kilometers that would have been travelled by van or truck. 

In addition, the pilot has spurred the creation of a second bike depot in the Smíchov area of the city, that opened in the third quarter of 2021. The new depot accommodates some of the logistics companies that are already operating out of the depot in Florenc, and others that were interested in participating in the pilot but were turned away for capacity reasons. 

The project has received extensive media coverage.

The biggest overarching challenge was the short timeframe in which the pilot was expected to get on the ground, especially as it was the first time this type of project was being attempted in the Czech Republic, all the while dealing with COVID-19 restrictions. The project involved coordination among many different stakeholders, which is challenging even in normal times, let alone during full lockdown conditions. 

Finding a suitable plot for the project also presented a challenge, as it needed to be economically viable, that is, under City ownership but underutilized, centrally located, and easily accessible from the outskirts of the city where logistics companies have their warehouses. This process took several months, and in the end, the Florenc location was chosen from four other possible sites. 

Another challenge was to involve additional logistics companies beyond those that had expressed interest from the outset, but this was quickly surmounted as demand for space at the depot eventually exceeded supply.

Lessons Learned

The project is interesting from a business model standpoint, where the City essentially allows the logistics companies to use the land free of charge, asking them to contribute solely to the operating costs of the project. This precludes the need for additional funding. The project also contributes to the reskilling of workers from sectors affected by COVID-19, as it offers a unique type of job opportunity that promotes the health of the couriers while benefiting the environment. 

The depot also encourages a culture of biking, making bikes more visible in the city centre. Prague still struggles to make biking as a mode of transport mainstream, largely due to the ignorance of drivers and the stresses of traffic in the city centre; this project is a step in the right direction. In addition, as Prague’s hilly terrain may also act as a deterrent to biking in the city, the higher visibility of electric bikes may further help raise the profile of cycling.

As in any pilot, this project is constantly evolving. There is always the possibility of improving the logistics of getting packages to the depot, loading the bikes, and even keeping track of new technologies for the bikes themselves. This evolution will facilitate increases in the number of deliveries made by bike and continue to remove additional delivery vans and trucks from the streets of the city. 

Transferability

It is important to note that while this type of facility may not be new in Europe, it is quite innovative in the Czech local context, where planning for automobiles has long taken precedence over planning for bikes. It is the City’s hope that this project can serve as inspiration for other cities where the biking culture and infrastructure lag behind.

Building on the pilot’s success, Prague is now planning to open a second depot in the Smíchov area of the city centre.

Additional information and photos of the project can be found here: www.depot.bike