October 24, 2023 - The inaugural in-person North American Cargo Bike Conference (NACBC) was successfully held on Sept. 9 in Vancouver, B.C. during the Fully Charged LIVE Canada event that debuted Feb. 8-10 at the Vancouver Convention Centre.

As e-cargo bikes continue to gain traction around the globe for personal and commercial use, the conference, organized by Our Greenway Conservancy, welcomed players from the government and business sectors to exchange ideas and propose solutions to some of the challenges facing this evolving sector of sustainable cycle logistics.

The presentation was in the form of round table discussions starting with a Municipalities panel, followed by Operators and then Manufacturers, with panel leaders posing questions.

Starting with Municipalities, the trio of experts included Jessica McLennan (City of Vancouver), Jason Meggs from Washington, DC (Transportation Research Board), and Aaron Dixon (City of Coquitlam). The three experts reviewed the pace at which changes can take hold amidst provincial transportation and highway act regulations, along with city by-laws. While solutions and integration can often take time, progress is being made to implement active transportation and sustainable logistic initiatives.

Operators such as Brad Baker (PenguinPickUp), Franklin Jones (B-Line Sustainable Urban Delivery), Sandra Allen (Shift Delivery Co-op) and Kevin McLaughlin (Zygg eBikes) reviewed the challenges that delivery riders face amidst the growing popularity of green solutions while addressing the bottom line that every business faces. Mobility solutions such as creating more delivery hubs and protected cycling infrastructure, including accommodating riders and their e-bikes on local transit, along with parking, loading and unloading, were some of the issues addressed.

“Electric vehicles have come a long way, and e-cargo bikes have emerged as the ideal choice for sustainable urban logistics. Consumers are eager to embrace sustainable delivery options and collaboration between businesses, municipalities and manufacturers is key. We must unite in unprecedented ways to build the infrastructure, partnerships and ecosystem required for sustainable last-mile solutions,” commented Brad Baker from PenguinPickUp.

The final panel, Manufacturers, saw Sven Etzelsberger (URB-E), Ben Morris (Coaster Cycles), Sam Atakhanov (DŌST Bikes), Guylain Roy-MacHabée (Innovobot) and Jared Sartee (Sartee Bikes) tackle the rapidly changing technical advancements and the need for standards and common-sense regulations, e.g., lithium-ion batteries to deliver safe and reliable products for consumer and commercial use. While acceptance is on the rise, in order to advance cycle logistics on a wider scale, green solutions need to meet or exceed the value proposition for delivery companies to convert.

“The NACBC is a stepping stone to bringing validation and collaboration in the cargo bike space. We need a venue where stakeholders can network, evaluate, and work to create the framework for broader market adoption. We’re eager to continue the conversations with all of the participants involved and continue to develop the road map for further innovation in cities across North America,” said Ben Morris from Coaster Cycles.

Following a lunch break that included networking, test rides and taking in the manufacturers showcase, the conference resumed with two workshops that were challenged to address what the future state of cargo bikes and cycle logistics might look like.

Some of the key takeaways included the need for more communication between businesses, manufacturers, operators and government officials, the development of national standards and certification policies, the implementation of more incentive programs and safe infrastructure, the modification of existing regulations to encourage and allow green solutions such as New York City’s pending approval of 4-wheel e-cargo bikes, and initiating more pilot programs such as e-cargo bike sharing.

The conference, sponsored by the Government of British Columbia, with support from the International Cargo Bike Festival, concluded with closing remarks by organizers Sam Starr and Darnel Harris from Our Greenway Conservancy, who thanked all sponsors and attendees.

“NACBC’s inaugural year had a great showing of leaders from across the North American commercial cargo bike industry, from municipalities, operators and manufacturers. Between the panels, the manufacturer’s showcase, and the interactive workshops, we are laying the foundations for the future of cargo bikes and cycle logistics across the continent. The key takeaway from the conference was the importance of collaboration and co-opetition, and the need for a sustainable ecosystem across all stakeholders to accelerate scalability and adoption,” added Starr.

The NACBC was greatly inspired by the International Cargo Bike Festival (ICBF), which is co-locating with Fully Charged Live Europe at Rai Amsterdam on November 24-26, 2023.

Our Greenway will share results from the event in the form of a State of the Industry academic report through its partnership with York University’s CITY Institute.

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