Pedal-powered B-Line helps downtown dry cleaner be more “Eco”

After celebrating a successful first year in business back in April, B-Line Sustainable Urban Delivery continues to help Portland businesses move their goods without burning fossil fuels.

According to an announcement made yesterday, B-Line has now teamed up with Eco Dry Cleaner to handle the majority of their downtown deliveries and customer pick-ups. The partnership means that Eco Dry Cleaner has replaced several of their delivery trucks with B-Lines cargo trikes (made by local builder Bill Stites) which can carry loads of up to 600 pounds.

Director of Sales for Eco Dry Cleaner, DJ Widmer says, “Partnering with B-Line’s trike delivery service makes perfect sense for us… With B-Line’s help, we can keep our delivery trucks off the road, which has a huge impact on both local air quality and on the amount of time we saving on parking and deliveries.”

B-Line founder Franklin Jones says his pedal-powered cargo trikes are simply, “the right tool” for businesses that need to get their products through high-traffic areas. Since B-Line launched back in April 2009, they’ve replaced an estimated 41,000 truck/van deliveries with 16,400 miles on their cargo trikes. Learn more about the company at BLinePDX.com.

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Founder of BikePortland (in 2005). Father of three. North Portlander. Basketball lover. Car driver. If you have questions or feedback about this site or my work, contact me via email at maus.jonathan@gmail.com, or phone/text at 503-706-8804. Also, if you read and appreciate this site, please become a paying subscriber.

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Spiffy
Spiffy
14 years ago

great news! the people at B-Line are awesome so it’s good to hear that their business is thriving…

Anne Hawley
14 years ago

I saw the Eco Drycleaner cargo trike parked on SW Madison at 6th the other day. It was garnering some interested and curious looks from passers-by, including me. It’s a great looking vehicle.

If I ever wore the kind of clothes that can’t go into the washer and onto the clothesline, I’d definitely support this business.

Amos
14 years ago

Dude. This is awesome. Free pickup and delivery, by bike. And shoe repair!? Sold.

mello yello
mello yello
14 years ago

I remember watching “The Apprentice” and how advertising was sold to local businesses to have their logos on pedicabs. I’ve seen flatbed trucks with upright billboards. Maybe these bikes, with their slower speeds and huge ad-space, will be the next evolution of mobile advertising — perhaps a whiteboard with local specials at area food carts.

Joe Adamski
Joe Adamski
14 years ago

I am more impressed that they have adopted a process that eliminates the use of perchloroehtylne, which is bad news when it gets into the groundwater, and stoddard solvent, a very flammable solvent that poses significant safety risk.
I havent had a chance to use them, as few of my clothes require dry cleaning, but I will use them when I do, especially to find out how efficient their silicone based cleaning process is.
Using bikes lowers their ‘carbon footprint’, but eliminating perc or stoddard lowers it on an expotential level, as both,but especially perc require a lot of petroleum for manufacture.

Trek 3900
Trek 3900
14 years ago

Why are clothes that require dry cleaning still being worn?

I hope that trike has an electric assist motor: http://www.ecospeed.com

jim
jim
14 years ago

I like to see this kind of inovation- good job.
I hope this has a real good braking system, It looks like it is really well thought out.

spare_wheel
spare_wheel
14 years ago

they have electric assist and excellent breaks. saw one come to screeching halt while doing hair-raising donuts at the nw parkway.

i want one.