Food delivery firm Wolt has said that just under a quarter (23%) of all the deliveries across its global operations in the past 12 months were made using ‘clean’ vehicles, such as electric vehicles or bicycles.
This marks an 8% increase year-on-year, it noted, with more and more of its courier partners across the 30 markets in which it operates switching to more sustainable transport modes.
‘Make cities better’
“Clean deliveries are not just essential for us to meet our climate commitments – they directly contribute to our mission to make cities better,” commented Jamie Saab, Wolt’s global head of sustainability. “This is about reducing air pollution, noise, and congestion – but also about making electric vehicles accessible and affordable for anyone doing deliveries.”
In terms of individual markets, Austria led the way, with 80% of deliveries made using clean vehicles over the past year.
This was followed by Germany, where 66% of deliveries were made using clean vehicles, and Hungary, Croatia and Poland, which each saw 30% of deliveries completed with clean vehicles this year.
Wolt Better Cities Fund
Wolt noted that it is supporting couriers in switching to greener modes of transport through the Wolt Better Cities Fund, a €2.25 million grant fund to support courier EV transitions that was unveiled last year.
Initially launched as a pilot programme, many couriers across eight different markets are already participating in the fund, with demand outpacing supply, according to Wolt.
“Too many couriers want to switch but face barriers like high upfront costs and financing challenges,” Saab added. “We’re working to break down those barriers so that choosing a zero-emission vehicle becomes the standard rather than the exception.
“Beyond sustainability, switching to e-bikes and e-mopeds just makes business sense: in many of our markets, two-wheelers are the most efficient way to serve merchants and customers in busy city centres.”
The company also reported an 8% reduction in emissions per delivery over the past 12 months, with some countries recording reductions of up to 50%. Read more here.
