San Francisco pilot finds e‑bikes cut travel but lower per‑delivery pay; staff recommends chargers, lockers and micro‑hubs

Anna Sherutu, a Clean Transportation Specialist at the San Francisco Department of the Environment, told the Local Agency Formation Commission on Nov. 15 that a California Energy Commission–funded pilot studying e‑bike deliveries offered mixed economic and operational results but clear environmental benefits.

Sherutu said the program, part of a $2,400,000 grant to implement projects in the city’s EV roadmap, enrolled 30 e‑bike riders (in two cohorts) and a control group of 30 car drivers. “E‑bike participants worked fewer hours and completed fewer deliveries, averaging about 2 hours and 6 deliveries per week compared to car participants, 4 hours and 15 deliveries per week,” Sherutu said, noting that drivers who used cars typically handled larger, higher‑paying orders.

The pilot found average earnings per delivery of $10.69 for e‑bike participants versus $11.47 for car drivers, a gap Sherutu attributed to platforms assigning smaller orders to riders for safety and capacity reasons. Sherutu cautioned that the study did not capture unpaid time spent waiting for app dispatches and therefore relied on earnings per delivery as the main comparable measure.

Despite lower per‑delivery earnings, Sherutu said e‑bikes were more cost‑effective overall because of lower purchase and maintenance costs, and they delivered environmental gains: participants eliminated 2,296 vehicle miles traveled during the pilot. The pilot also revealed security and operational challenges; six of the 30 e‑bikes were stolen during the study period, and participants reported longer wait times for orders than their car counterparts.

Based on the findings, the Department recommended six near‑term steps to support e‑bike deliveries: pilot curbside charging for micromobility devices; explore secure parking options such as lockers and staffed valets; expand protected bike lanes and dedicated loading zones; extend e‑bike rebate programs to include cargo bikes; create an urban freight team to coordinate cross‑departmental policy; and pilot a city‑led micrologistics hub (micro‑hub) with a feasibility study to identify locations and partnerships.

Sherutu also said the project team will expand the research through U.S. Department of Energy funding to recruit up to 60 additional e‑bike riders and 60 car drivers over the next two years and to develop an e‑bike calculator tool to help delivery workers evaluate economic and environmental tradeoffs.

Questions from commissioners focused on charger siting, safety and platform practices. Vice Chair Hope Williams asked whether the 20‑foot no‑parking rule near intersections could create space for chargers; Sherutu suggested battery‑swap lockers or lower‑visibility charging could reduce sight‑line issues but said some charging installations would require careful design to avoid obstructing crosswalks. Commissioner Dean Preston pressed on why e‑bike orders paid less; Sherutu said platforms appear to route borderline or larger orders to cars for safety.

The presentation closed with no public commenters. LAFCO staff and commissioners signaled interest in continuing to advise the Department during phase 2 of the work.