Making delivery work is darn difficult: even when everything’s going well with the customers and the kitchens, you still have to manage hundreds of thousands of very loosely managed workers. With unaligned incentives, why should a courier make sure an order is right, or wait around for a customer that’s running late, or even verify that a would-be scammer actually did receive their order?
One potential solution to this problem would be to convert 3PDs to a delivery service partner (DSP) model, similar to the one used by Amazon or FedEx. That leads to local businesses owning their routes in different cities, keeping management closer to customers and workers. We’ve actually just seen DoorDash start exploring this concept, as it launched its Local Service Partner program in Austin and Fresno.
This week I sat down with First Delivery’s CEO Andrew Nakkache to game out how this system might work at scale, and to learn more about how he’s built his own delivery software business. Listen in above or on Spotify or Apple Podcasts!
What’s Driving Transit’s Ridership Rebound?
New FTA data compiled by transit advocate Naqiy Mcmullen shows that public transit usage is still growing at a decent pace nationwide, with NYC, Boston, Atlanta and SF BART looking to be sorry exceptions.
But what exactly is it that makes rail transit work in some cities, while it seemingly falls flat in others? As the Urban Institute’s Yonah Freemark notes, residents of cities like NYC and DC take many train trips per year, while Dallasites do not, despite North Texas now boasting a good 100ish miles of light rail.
The crux of the argument is that it’s not just about raw mileage, but about overall coverage… you need to make sure folks actually live near all that rail, a reflection both of whether a region has prioritized TOD, and how much it’s sprawled along highways in general.
Especially when you’re competing with abundant free parking, you need a big percentage of your population to live near metro stations to make things work.
Sadly not graphed, but perhaps even more important, is how much of a region’s office space is near transit. After all, some folks will take a bus or drive to a train that they then ride to the office; very few folks will take a train and then finish up that commute by other modes. Dense but polycentric cities can eventually be served with rail systems of a sufficient scale, but edgeless office districts… an endless expanse of three story office parks on random cul-de-sacs, is very hard to serve with good transit. We see that holding back not just sunbelt cities like Miami, but even “older” regions like Philadelphia. All the more reason to double down on dense infill in the core!
HOT INDUSTRY NEWS & GOSSIP
Meet us at Micromobility America! Micromobility America, the world’s premier trade show for small EVs, is coming to Southern California on 11/14-15, featuring cutting-edge insights, executive networking, valuable commercial opportunities, and of course, a chance to test ride all the coolest new electric bikes, scooters, boards, buggies, and more.
Curbivore has secured a handful of complimentary tickets for our friends and partners. Reply to this newsletter or reach out if you’re interested in snagging one.
Curbside partnerships: Congrats to our friends at CurbIQ on digitizing last-mile freight curb access with Seattle DOT, funded via SMART grant. Meanwhile, Comcast Smart Solutions partners up with Umojo and Eleven-x on curb management software solutions.
How do you say “state capacity” in Italian?🤌 Milan just opened a big extension of its Metro Line 4, pushing its length past 15 kilometers. The total cost, including rolling stock, came in around €2.3 billion, despite tunneling through Italy’s complex and historic geology. That works out to ~$268M per mile, around 1/10th of the cost we’re seeing for subways in America. And just to throw a little extra salt in the wound, driverless trains will arrive every 90 seconds.
Slow down, San Diegan e-bikers! CA Governor Newsom signed into law AB 2234, a very specific piece of legislation. It allows, but doesn’t mandate, that cities in just San Diego County can now ban the use of electric bicycles by riders under 12. As much as we love the idea of e-bikes everywhere, you sometimes see what’s essentially an electric motorcycle labeled an “e-bike” because it has some vestigial pedals on its million horsepower frame. So this seems like a decent compromise to keep folks safe near the popular boardwalks and bike paths of SoSoCal.
Caltrain bounces back: Caltrain, the rail operator between SF and San Jose, recently completed its electrification, allowing it to run nearly metro-like service, with popular stations now seeing trains about every 15 minutes. As a result, ridership is quickly rebounding, up 36% in one month. Hopefully its usage can eclipse its pre-covid activity once more Bay Areans adjust their commutes…
Downtown going down? While China’s real estate market has been in trouble for a few years now, thus far its commercial and office sectors had been relatively unaffected, a sharp contrast to the situation in North America. Things now appear to be turning for the worse, with occupancy rates in some trophy skyscrapers and premiere districts slumping to 60%. With Beijing already shooting its money canon into propping up the residential sector, might China be staring into a looming, 1990s Japan-style asset price bubble pop?
The people like secure bike parking! Getting a community to give up curb space for a new use can be a daunting task. It took years, and countless outreach meetings, for Oonee to get permission to install its secure bike parking / e-bike charging pods on NYC’s busy sidewalks. But now that they’re live, evidently folks are clamoring for even more, and even bigger, installations.
Farmin’ ain’t easy: Word on the street is that Food Access LA, one of SoCal’s largest farmers market operators, is under financial duress. The group, FKA SEE-LA, runs eight markets, including a rather prestigious and chef-friendly one in Hollywood, while also offering community-focused goodies like a $15 EBT match. The group is now fundraising to help keep its street-enlivening operations afloat.
India electrifies: Shout out to the EV Equation podcast, a new series covering the socio-economic effects of the EV Transition in India and Africa. Tune in on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.
A few good links: Meet Serve’s newest delivery bots. LA finally pedestrianizes Broxton Plaza (née Broxton Ave,) in walkable Westwood Village. NYCDOT lowering speed limits on streets near parks. Is battery swapping for EVs finally taking off in China? Nissan joins ChargeScape alliance. Bolt and Dubai Taxi partner on UAE TNCs. New Red Line train services opens in Lagos.
See you tonight at our Mobility & Delivery Tech Happy Hour in Culver City!
- Jonah Bliss & The Curbivore Crew
Could DoorDash Do DSPs? Building A Delivery Biz with First's Andrew Nakkache