GLS Austria opens depot for cargo bikes in Graz
Parcel company GLS Austria supplies large parts of Graz by cargo bikes. The e-bikes will replace about three vans. They will be used in the districts of Liebenau, Puntigam, Mariatrost, Andritz, Gösting and parts of Graz-Umgebung.
“Our cargo bike depot in Graz is a milestone towards sustainable city logistics,” says Dr. Axel Spörl, General Manager GLS Austria. The e-bikes relieve traffic and the air quality in Styria’s capital, which has been fighting high levels of fine particles.
Inner-city stores can operate more flexible, as the cargo bikes may enter the shopping streets throughout the day, unlike vans. This enables GLS to deliver and pick up parcels in shops throughout the day. The cargo bike depot in Graz-Liebenau comes with its own conveyor belt for parcel handling, two loading gates for trucks, and charging stations for the e-bikes. Currently three swap bodies are unloaded there every day, and the parcels are subsequently distributed by the cargo bikes and vans.
GLS, General Logistics Systems B.V. (headquartered in Amsterdam), provides parcel services for over 220,000 customers in Europe, complemented by logistics and express services. Through wholly owned and partner companies, the group provides a network coverage of 41 European states and is globally connected via contractual agreements. Over 70 central transhipment points and more than 1,000 depots are at GLS’ disposal. Every day around 17,000 employees and 26,000 vehicles are on route for GLS. In the financial year 2016/17 GLS transported 508 million parcels and achieved revenues of EUR 2.5 billion.