Rotterdam offers e-bikes to transport bulky waste

The Dutch city of Rotterdam is helping its residents meet the city's aim of increasing the share of bulky waste that is recycled in the city.

To do this, the municipality has launched a trial of a rental service for cargo bikes, so that residents can use these to transport bulky waste to an environmental park. Once the waste arrives at an environmental park, it will either be renewed or recycled for use in new goods.

The trial will operate until the end of October 2022. The residents of Rotterdam are able to book an electric cargo bike or a trailer online and pick it up from a number of different locations around the city. They can then use the bike or trailer for free for part of the day to take their bulky waste items to an environmental park. The cargo bikes and trailers have been selected to allow residents to transport bulky goods, such as sofas, cupboards, washing machines and garden waste.

To give residents some flexibility, the trailer can be attached to a car, as well as to an electric bike. At the end of the trial period, the municipality will evaluate the scheme to learn whether it provided a useful service to its residents and therefore whether it should be made permanent from 2023.