Delivery/courier with an ebike

Has anyone done it? I am going to test it out soon. I just like riding my ebike so much that I want to get paid for it and do more miles. I also know my city really well for getting around, all the best routes.

It seems that for the typical messenger, an ebike is not common to use. I realize you will want some good range, but fast charging 5 min here, 10 min there could be done easily too.

If this is something that interests you, now is the time. There's no real regulation, and demand for deliveries is increasing in central cities. I'd go so far as to say that if you want to pursue the pedicab fleet model of renting the e-bikes to other deliverymen, you're in a narrowing window of opportunity to become a stakeholder who can help suggest the terms under which such businesses will operate going forward.

Are you going to ride for Favor? I see those folks more and more often in my shop lately.

I signed up with Postmates, but may try others like Favor, Grubhub.

As for bike messengers in the downtown area, I don't think an ebike would help that much......hmmm actually it might. Considering how 5th and 6th, and Guadalupe and Lavaca traffic lights are all timed for auto traffic at 25-28mph, being able to go those speeds could certainly help. It would definitely have to be a lightweight ebike. From what I heard, the only messengers who have used ebikes were some older guys. My advantage is also being able to cover a larger area, all over central Austin.

I am excited to see how it works. I have 3 homemade ebikes that don't get ridden nearly as much as I'd like. I live 7 miles north of DT, so will be focusing more up here I think. But I could always hang around downtown to get those jobs too.

I met two pedicabbers this week who were really interested in my ebike. With the price of ebike kits so cheap now, I'm a little surprised I don't see more ebikes out there, especially in our hot climate.

Electric assist is specifically prohibited on pedicabs for hire in Austin. The only electric ones you'll see working in this area are those operated by the franchisee at the Circuit Of The Americas. That being private property, it's subject to neither Austin's ban on e-pedicabs nor the state limitation on e-bikes to no more than 100 pounds.

Our city hall in Vancouver is all about going "green", so their arms twist (relatively!) easily in that direction.
There's at least 1 company operating e-trike "vans" here:
http://www.shiftdelivery.ca/ - do office supply & laundry
I see them around a lot, it seems to work. Can park on sidewalks right in front of the entrance, a huge advantage for medium sized deliveries.

+ Some independants; dedicated gardening e-trikes, an electrician company with a fleet of 2 wheel e scooters, an appliance repair guy with a long john with a diamond plate box.
I think e-pedicabs come & go; that's a demanding task and tough design challenge, I've seen a lot broken.

But I never noticed a 2 wheel courier e-bike. Couriers do a lot of miles a day.

Juiced Riders do a really decent USA style delivery bike, Amazon uses them for Prime delivery in NYC.

Yeah, I knew that pedicabs are not allowed to use motor power here. I think the drivers wanted it for their personal bike. One of them has been on here a while ago.

I wonder if a mechanical energy storage system would be prohibited too. Would help getting up to speed. It's not a motor....

Today was my first day, did about 7 deliveries, mostly in the campus area. Other than accepting one that was 8 miles away and the customer asking me to meet in a different location, they were all pretty easy. I did 40 miles, the ebike did good. The money was nothing to brag about, but it was fun. I need to get a better phone mount on the bikes, and a larger cargo area. Next time I'll bring my charger along so I can do more.

veloman said:

Today was my first day, did about 7 deliveries, mostly in the campus area. Other than accepting one that was 8 miles away and the customer asking me to meet in a different location, they were all pretty easy. I did 40 miles, the ebike did good. The money was nothing to brag about, but it was fun. I need to get a better phone mount on the bikes, and a larger cargo area. Next time I'll bring my charger along so I can do more.

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Try a phone mount from kwmobile. I use mine (Xperia Z3) without the rubber band and it works great.

It's been a week and I've done 50 deliveries, worked about 30 hours, did 313 miles

Things I learned -

My heavy ebike does fine in the urban areas, since it has decent power (up to 2kw). I lock up my bike at every place where I won't be in clear site of it (every pickup, most dropoffs). I really don't see an advantage of a lightweight pedal only bike, aside from needing to recharge every few hours (which isn't much of an issue). I carry a 5amp charger and so I'm almost full after an hour with my 6-7ah pack. That gets me around 23 miles.

With the ebike I am able to do jobs I would never consider on a bike, such as 8 miles out into the hilly area of town. Some of those hills would have me at 5mph on a pedal bike, working my butt off. In reality, 95% of the time I'm either faster, same speed, or within a few minutes of what it would take in a car. Occasionally a car would be nice for those dropoffs that would use a highway for a number of miles.

The motorcycle is not surprisingly, a bit faster when traffic is light (night). It would be even faster if I had a steering lock and didn't need to use a bike lock on the wheel. Also I need to build a fairing for it so I will be happy to go faster with less drag.

I haven't had any serious close calls with traffic. It doesn't feel as dangerous as I was concerned about. Being patient reduces stress even if it costs you a few minutes.

I built a phone mount for the motorcycle from an old tool pack battery casing. It worked really well.
Customers are nice, though a fair number are not tipping or forgetting to close out the order (tip and rate me). Many of them don't give instructions on how to find their apt or even give their apt #. Many apts don't have an easily visible street number or anything. That's the most frustrating part. (carry a flashlight at night)

I stuffed a cardboard box in a large backpack, and that seems to work okay for now for most take out bags. Favor seems to give their riders a nice insulated delivery box/backpack. I still need to work on a better solution for fountain drinks and pizzas.

I think this is the most fun job I've had. Mostly because I get to ride my ebikes. I think using a high power ebike or motorcycle is the only way to go, unless you have a really cheap to run small car and don't do campus jobs during the day. (Maybe a pedal bike in the car would be a good idea for some?)

I do have a 5.0/5.0 rating 8)

I"m a little late to the thread but...

Sun Atlas Cargo
Front BMC Torque Motor
Lyen 12fet controller

I built an old growth redwood rack to fit 3 standard catering bags...

Loaded up...

In all it's glory!

Damn. What rear tire are you running?

Schwalbes....Crazy Bob rear, Dureme front....Everyone raves about Big Apples but when I discovered Bobs, I was forever hooked, plus I install them with sunlite thorn resistant tubes. I maybe get 2 flats a year at most.....
They're listed in the eBike section on Schwalbes' website and they have the highest load bearing rating. Sometimes those catering bags were 60lbs. ea.

Rock On, veloman! Takes me back... to the late 1800s:

I've done over 600 deliveries now, mostly with my ebike, maybe 1/4 with the emoto.

It's how I make my living.
Thanks to all those customers who tip well, without them it wouldn't be worth it.

I've done about 3300 miles so far. Two flat tires ( screw, nail). No real close calls with cars. I guess it helps being super experienced.

It's getting hot here now. 100, 110 heat index. I carry a spray bottle of water with me to keep my shirt damp and reduce how much I have to sweat. Evaporative cooling is the only way in this heat. Also good to hit the motor with it if I am worried. The emoto Perm132 gets pretty hot, too hot to touch for more than 2 seconds sometimes. No temp sensor, but I rarely go over 4kw, and usually around 1.5-2kw cruising. It suppose to be rated at 7kw, but that's at 70deg F I'm sure. And with more direct wind.

I added some more battery to the ebike. In addition to my main pack of 76v 6ah, I have a 52v 5.5ah now. The difference between 25 and 40 miles range has saved my ass almost every day since I added them. Easily made another $15 each day because of it.

I can envision that right now.
A delivery person that is shows up to a door with a wet shirt on.

Extra tip for you sir!

Personal Microclimate Body Cooling Vest
RRP: $399.00 (Currently $249.00)

Click to expand...

Consider it a "Business Expense" (tax deductible)

The Circulating Cold Water Cooling Vest was first built for the military. To pump the icy cold water continually through the 65' tube which are sewed into the vest brings your core temperature down to 61°F to 77°F for 3 to 4 hours per ice pack. The tubes are made out of medical grade PVC. With the stretch (Cotton/Lycra) fabric and mesh liners, this vest is very durable, light weight and comfortable. Whether you are a chef working in the hot kitchen, a construction worker or a landscaper working under the sun or anyone need to be cool, it is important to lower the core temperature to allow you work faster, fewer mistakes and quick reaction time. Optional Coolant pack can be backpack, waist pack or shoulder pack for your convenience.

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http://www.batteryheatedclothing.co...Clothing/circulating-cold-water-cooling-vest/

So. Got a DC-DC converter that puts out 6.5-8.5V DC?

Build your own cooling vest

markz said:

Build your own cooling vest

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Dynamite vest full of Fla-vor-ice sticks?

Those things work. I built them for auto racing. From f-1 pit crew to the Nascar driver. They are a big hit at the 24hr Rolex races.

Dan

Yeh I should look into it. I already wear a small backpack for my things.