April 12, 2021 - Los Angeles-based URB-E is quietly laying the groundwork of the future of grocery delivery reports Grocery Dive.

URB-E has designed compact containers propelled by e-bikes with 750-watt mid-drive motors, that can haul heavy loads of up to 800 pounds of goods for a fraction of the cost of using a conventional van.

“The idea is you load your bags straight into this cart, and when it’s time for them to be delivered, a bike comes up and they go off and do the deliveries,” said Charles Jolley, an investor in the firm who became its CEO in March.

To minimize idle time, riders leave an empty delivery cart behind when they pick one up. URB-E currently has about 1,800 containers circulating in New York.

URB-E’s concept is built on the company’s theory that using small electric vehicles instead of trucks propelled by gasoline or diesel engines to bring grocery orders from stores to customers is the key to boosting margins on delivery orders for retailers.

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