With the aim of accelerating the uptake of sustainable modes of transport, the City of Leipzig has been promoting cargo bikes in many ways. Listed below are some of the most impactful and fun cargo bike initiatives.

Administrative courier scheme

Since August 2020, the administrative courier service has been exclusively using cargo bikes for delivering mail in the city centre. The city's central courier service carries out up to 130 deliveries to offices, authorities, and institutions daily. The scheme is part of the administration’s broader commitment to sustainable transport.

The company providing the cargo bike courier service is Fulmo Kurierdienst, a logistics company based in Leipzig. For each delivery, the couriers cycle between five and twelve kilometres, covering a distance of up to 315 km per day.

Sharing scheme

Leipzig, along with 14 other German cities, is part of the municipal network for public cargo bike sharing, TINK. Thanks to this scheme, a total of 30 cargo bikes have been available for hire at seven stations in the City of Leipzig since July 2022. After a successful pilot, the city, together with its partners, is striving to implement a permanent rental scheme. Cargo bike sharing has the potential to bring about a major shift in urban mobility in Leipzig: it encourages people to leave their cars at home, thereby protecting the climate and improving people’s health while making the city more liveable and attractive.

Last-mile logistics concept

According to a recent study by the German EHI Retail Group on behalf of the Swiss company Interroll, retailers are increasingly turning to micro hubs as a solution for green and efficient last mile deliveries. Retailers prefer to temporarily store their parcels in smaller facilities (micro hubs) located in the inner city or in residential areas. With cargo bikes often being the cheapest and fastest option, they are the ideal solution for last mile deliveries for retailers. Leipzig has already included a last-mile logistics concept in its Mobility Strategy 2030, according to which all deliveries destined for the city will be bundled outside the city centre and then delivered with low-emission vehicles, such as cargo bikes.

Age inclusivity programme

Since May 2022, as part of the "Cycling without age" programme, Leipzig has made four rickshaws available for seniors and people who can no longer pedal themselves. With this, it aims to make cycling accessible to people of all ages. To date, there are already 30 trained volunteers cycling around the city with elderly people, thus tackling the risk of social isolation that many of them face.

Subsidies and Grants

In December 2020, the federal state of Saxony introduced a €75,000 cargo bike subsidy scheme to support small businesses and organisations in purchasing cargo bikes. Grants are also available for innovative projects that contribute to the implementation of the National Cycling Plan, such as new models of mobility education, new concepts for improving quality of life and proposals for the compatible design of pedestrian and cycling infrastructure.

Events

The Leipzig Cargo Bike Challenge is a competition like no other. Organised by Kollektiv Lastenrad Leipzig and held in the beginning of the summer, contestants can compete with self-made cargo bikes, trailer pulling bikes, family carriages and other types of bikes in the speed race. However, the Cargo Bike Challenge is much more than a race: the event also features food, music, children’s activities, and fun games.

Unlocking the potential of cargo bikes

To fully unlock the potential of cargo bikes, cities and administrations need to implement new mobility strategies. Leipzig is already at the forefront of prioritising sustainable transport in its political and social agenda. In recognition of its sustainable urban development policies, its progress and further ambitions for cycling, Leipzig was selected as the host city of Velo-city 2023 by the European Cyclists’ Federation. Cargo bikes will take centre stage at Velo-city. Do not miss the #VC23 sessions The rise of the cargo bikes: a game changer for European cities and How cargo bikes drive change.

The Cargo Bike Friendly Cities Dashboard is a new tool that evaluates the cargo bike friendliness of 125 cities across 33 countries based on 7 indicators.

The full programme of the international cycling summit is available here.

Velo-city is the world cycling summit, where advocates, cities, decision- and policy makers, researchers and industry leaders meet to shape the future of cycling. As the annual flagship event of the European Cyclists’ Federation, Velo-city plays a valuable part in promoting cycling as a sustainable and healthy means of transport for all. Taking place under the theme #LeadingTheTransition, Velo-city 2023 Leipzig will ask the inevitable question: What future do we want to live in? Join us for an unforgettable conference experience from 9–12 May 2023.