This trike was designed and built in Portland. It could also revolutionize last-mile delivery.
(Photo: Mark Gamba)

Remember the Truck Trike?

It was almost 10 years ago when we first introduced you to this Portland-made, Portland-desinged, bike lane legal, electric-assisted bicycle that can haul up to 600 pounds of cargo. Bill Stites (Stites Design) has evolved his product considerably since then. When we last heard from him a year ago his trikes were being tested by UPS in a last-mile delivery pilot project up in Seattle.
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A last-mile delivery solution that reduces congestion, doesn’t kill people, and doesn’t spew toxic exhaust into your mouth as it passes.
(Photo: Truck Trike)

In a partnership with the City of Seattle and University of Washington, delivery giant UPS announced today they will use pedal-assist, electric cargo bikes to make deliveries around Pike Place Market and other parts of downtown.

The best part about this news? The bikes being used in this pilot program come from Portland-based company Truck Trike.

Here’s more about the delivery program from a UPS press release:

In an effort to address growing traffic congestion and air quality concerns, UPS and Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan today announced the deployment of an innovative downtown delivery pilot project using pedal-assist cargo eBikes and customized, modular trailers. The cargo eBikes will operate in the historic Pike Place Market and downtown Seattle area on sidewalks and in designated bike lanes.
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The UPS e-bike in action.
(Photos by Mark Gamba for Truck Trike)

Global package delivery juggernaut UPS has chosen Portland to debut its first electric-assist trike in the U.S.

In a statement released today, UPS said, “The deployment of the eBike is part of UPS’s ongoing commitment to reduce carbon emissions as city populations and e-commerce grow, and traffic, noise and air quality challenges continue to rise.”

Using trikes and other small, pedal-powered vehicles to deliver cargo in dense urban areas is relatively common in Europe. The European Cyclists’ Federation (an EU-funded non-profit) says 25 percent of all goods could potentially be delivered bicycles. That number rises to 50 percent when just considering lightweight cargo.
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This custom ‘Truck Trike’, made in southeast Portland by Stites Design, will soon be on the streets of Manhattan hauling Citi Bike bikes between rental stations.
(Photos J. Maus/BikePortland)

When a local bike company toils on cool projects for many years, then finally breaks through to something big, we get really excited. Such is the case with Stites Design, the southeast Portland company that has sold a custom version of their electric-assist Truck Trike to Alta Bicycle Share for use in the Citi Bike bike share system in New York City. [Read more…]

Bill Stites on his Truck Trike in 2010.
(Photo J. Maus/BikePortland)

A Portland company has developed a new tool that will help New York City’s Citi Bike bike share system perform the important job of “rebalancing.”

Bill Stites of Stites Design has worked with Citi Bike vendor Alta Bicycle Share to create a prototype “truck trike” that will haul bike share bikes between kiosks in New York City’s crowded streets. (We profiled Stites’ trike back in 2010.) We’re getting a closer look at the trike today and Alta has just sent out the following statement about a media/launch event on Monday:[Read more…]

Bill Stites and his Truck Trike.
– Slideshow below/Gallery –
(Photos © J. Maus)

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