San Francisco Chronicle: S.F. hopes federal grant speeds up switch to e-bikes for food delivery services

Cynthia Dizikes, San Francisco Chronicle

San Francisco is doubling down on efforts to get more food delivery services — such as  Grubhub, Uber Eats and DoorDash — to use e-bikes instead of cars. 

Mayor London Breed announced Friday that the city has been awarded a $600,000 grant by the U.S. Department of Energy to expand the city’s e-bike delivery pilot program by more than doubling the number of participants, according to a news release.

“This pilot is an example of how we are utilizing innovation to help create solutions that are working towards our Climate Action Plan, reducing congestion on our streets, and supporting workers in San Francisco,” Breed said in a statement. 

Local food couriers working for the delivery platforms apply to the program, and selected applicants commit to delivering on an assigned e-bike and are provided with helmets, locks, bags and training on how to use e-bikes, according to the news release.

The city estimates that 40% of San Francisco’s carbon emissions come from vehicles that operate on fossil fuels.

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