The NYC Department of Transportation announced a new pilot program designed to make package deliveries more sustainable and less reliant on traffic-clogging trucks.
The three-year program kicks off in Clinton Hill, Greenpoint, and the Upper West Side before expanding to locations around the city. Since COVID, the city’s increased demands for delivery mean more trucks on streets (the DOT says that 90% of deliveries rely on trucks), but “[t]ransferring packages to smaller, low-emissions vehicles and human-powered modes like cargo bikes and handcarts for last-mile delivery reduces the number of big trucks on local streets,” the DOT’s website reads. “This helps protect our environment and promotes safer streets.”
The DOT plans to set up a microhub on Meeker Avenue between Sutton Street and Kingsland Avenue. The hub will be about 80-100 feet and include signage, safety barriers, and space for package sorting. Each hub will be assigned to one delivery company. The agency has not provided a specific date for the plan’s implementation.
For more information, check out the DOT presentation made to Brooklyn Community Board 1 last year.