“The work pays in some cases half of the minimum wage, and as a natural consequence of that, people are going faster or maybe they’re taking shortcuts, running red lights, going on the footpath, stuff like that,” Clayton said.
Clayton recently started a job with a bike delivery company that pays an hourly rate. He said the difference was “like night and day” between his new job and his previous ones.
“All the delivery times are reasonable, whereas with the old delivering that I was doing in order to just make a reasonable amount of money, you just have to go, go, go,” he said.
Clayton said most delivery riders supplied their own e-bike by renting through Zoomo, which provides e-bikes that meet Australian regulations, or by using an e-bike imported from China.
In Victoria, an electric power-assisted cycle can use a throttle up to 6km/h, it can use 250 watts of continuous rated power and the motor must cut out at 25km/h. With a power-assisted pedal cycle, the pedals must be the primary source of power and the power cannot be over 200 watts.
But e-bikes with no such limits are imported and sold in Australia, relying on the legal loophole that the speed limit does not apply on private property such as farms and driveways.
Dr Jonty Karro, head of the emergency department at St Vincent’s, said there had been a definite increase in e-bike injuries.Credit: Justin McManus
“There’s nothing preventing the import or the sale of these bikes,” Clayton said. “So the shops aren’t really breaking the law.”
A spokeswoman for Uber Eats said only delivery people using motorbikes or four-wheeled vehicles had to register their vehicles on the platform, meaning there was no data on those using bicycles or e-bikes.
“The safety of delivery people is always a top priority at Uber Eats,” she said. “As more choose e-bikes to make deliveries, we’re committed to supporting them with the guidance and gear they require to stay safe on the road.”
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The spokeswoman said she was unable to share the number of accidents involving e-bike riders using the platform but that delivery staff had to abide by relevant laws.
Uber Eats provide free high-visibility protective gear to its delivery riders.
A DoorDash spokeswoman could not say how many delivery riders used e-bikes or how many accidents had occurred involving e-bikes.
“We’re looking forward to working constructively with government and other stakeholders while continuing to support Dashers and their opportunities to earn on our platform,” she said.
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Lord Mayor Nick Reece said this month that the City of Melbourne was considering introducing a permit system for e-bike delivery vehicles.
“We have heard loud and clear people’s concerns about e-bikes speeding on footpaths, parking anywhere, blocking passage and creating a safety hazard,” he said. “E-bikes are meant to be limited … but if you stand on any street in Melbourne for a few minutes you will see this law is clearly not being followed.”
Reece said there were close to 5000 gig workers in Melbourne and the council would work with Uber Eats, Panda, and DoorDash to get a permit scheme in place.
“We want to ensure the food and parcel delivery works for everyone in Melbourne, including keeping things safe for pedestrians and people who use our streets,” he said.
Clayton said the delivery riders did not make enough money to pay any fees associated with a permit.
“Where are these workers going to get the money from?” he said. “They’re already deducting bike rental or bike purchase and maintenance, and then they want to come along and add permits as a cost to that.”
Clayton said a bigger issue was that the City of Melbourne did not provide any infrastructure for food delivery workers.
“There’s nowhere to wait, there’s nowhere to park your bike, there’s no way to lock it up, and there’s no way to take a break,” he said.
Food delivery platform Hungry Panda did not respond to a request for comment.
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