As Dubrovnik.net reports, as part of the EU project City Changer Cargo Bike, the City of Dubrovnik procured four electric cargo bikes for city companies. Two bicycles are intended for the needs of Čistoća company – one of them will be used on Elafiti islands, namely Lopud. The Vrtlar company workers will be using two other bikes in parts of the town where there are no cars, such as Lapad Bay or the historic core.
Electric vehicles – vehicles of the future
Among 20 cities, the City of Dubrovnik received about one million kunas in non-refundable funds spent on electric bicycles, salaries, project documentation, and the exchange of experiences. This project’s goal, which is part of the HORIZON 2020 program, promotes urban mobility through innovative solutions. The total value of the project in all 20 project partners is 28.5 million kunas.
“With this project, we continue to transform the city, turning to the technology of electric vehicles, which are the vehicles of the future. In cooperation with Croatian Electricity Company (HEP), charging stations for electric vehicles are being set up. We are also preparing an electric bus project, and the car-sharing project has come to life quite well considering the overall pandemic situation,” said Dubrovnik Mayor Mato Franković presenting the City Changer Cargo Bike project.
Electric cargo bikes. Čistoća workers on the left, Mayor Mato Franković on the right. / Source: Dubrovnik.hr
Such bicycles for delivery could make everyday life easier for caterers, traders, delivery services, and citizens. Since this is a pilot project, the mayor says it remains questionable whether the project will come to life and whether more new electric cargo bikes will be procured.
They will learn from the European cities of Utrecht, Cambridge, San Sebastian, and Copenhagen, where the use of cargo bicycles has proven to be very economically viable and effective, especially in their pedestrian or “car-free” zones.
Porter service and transportation of elderly citizens
Franković believes that Dubrovnik should also turn to electric vehicle technology. He points out that the City is also working on electric taxis, but first, it is necessary to ensure all the technical prerequisites in the city. The first electric buses were already planned, but that project was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Hopefully, they will be implemented soon.
In addition to reducing CO2 emissions, which is a great environmental benefit of electric cargo bikes, they also reduce noise and crowds in cities. Due to the many tourists who visit Dubrovnik every year, Dubrovnik citizens encounter noise due to suitcases being dragged through the streets in the early morning hours. This destroys the sidewalks, too. Is it likely that this problem could be solved soon?
Crowds in Dubrovnik / Copyright Romulić and Stojčić
“We also have a new idea that arrived recently – the porter service. One company is interested in organizing a porter service for the area of the entire historic core. Our citizens are protesting on suitcases in the early morning hours when they are dragged through the streets. With the porter service, that problem would be solved. Porters would come, take the suitcases, load them on the electric vehicle, and drive them out of town. The suitcases would end up at the airport, where the owner would then take them over,” Franković explained.
And besides the porter service, one of the ideas of using electric cargo bikes is to transport senior citizens from the historic center to buses or taxis. Depending on how the project with electric bicycles develops, Franković announced that citizens would be able to use them.
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