Green economy

Sustainable transport: cargo bikes are coming to the centre of Florence

Following Milan, Verona and Bologna, the logistics group UPS is trialling the use of bicycles for deliveries in the centre of the Tuscan capital as well

by Niccolò Gramigni

22 September 2026

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3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Key points

The new project in Florence
The digital platform
Experiences in Milan, Bologna and Verona, and the figures for Italia

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

From its logistics services in Milan, Bologna and Verona to the launch of the European project in Florence, funded under the Horizon Europe programme: UPS, the logistics group, is expanding its network of cargo bikes with the aim of creating a new model for last-mile deliveries.

The new project in Florence

The company and the City of Florence have launched the final operational phase of Unchain, the project aimed at developing more efficient models for urban logistics management. A micro-hub has been unveiled in Piazza Annigoni, in the Sant’Ambrogio area of Florence: the novelty is that two cargo bikes will carry out deliveries in the historic centre. This is an innovative and experimental project, set to run for six months.

There are two advantages. The first relates to traffic: using cargo bikes means preventing bulky vehicles such as lorries from driving through the historic centre, where the streets are narrow. The second relates to the environment: having fewer polluting vehicles on the road results in significant reductions in emissions.

After six months, we will assess how to proceed and perhaps even extend the project to other areas.

The digital platform

At the same time, a dedicated digital platform has been launched to support the booking of spaces for loading and unloading operations, check-in and check-out procedures, and the management of activities at the micro-hub; in addition, sensors and cameras will help to monitor the use of available spaces. The trial will be assessed on the basis of indicators such as kilometres travelled, load levels and productivity. According to Marzia Picciano, UPS’s public affairs manager, ‘the challenge of urban logistics requires solutions developed through dialogue and collaboration between logistics operators, local authorities and all relevant stakeholders, making increasingly intelligent use of data and technology’.

“The Unchain project,” explains Andrea Giorgio, Councillor for Mobility and Ecological Transition at Florence City Council, “is moving exactly in the direction we want to go: changing our approach to urban logistics: an issue that has become even more crucial since the post-Covid period, with a 300 per cent increase in deliveries within the city. Testing cargo bikes from the micro-hub in Piazza Annigoni allows us to assess, in a real-world setting, an alternative and sustainable solution capable of reducing the impact of large vehicles in the historic centre and minimising their interference with pedestrians and cyclists.”

The City Council – together with the Florence Chamber of Commerce, led by its president, Massimo Manetti – is working on an urban logistics plan.

Experiences in Milan, Bologna and Verona, and the figures for Italia

The schemes in Milan and Bologna are already well established: here, UPS uses cargo bikes to promote a different form of urban mobility (though, unlike in Florence, there are no micro-hubs). Specifically, in Milan, muscle-powered Bullit Cargo Bikes are used, equipped with a cargo compartment with a capacity of around 100 kg: in 2025, electric quadricycles were also introduced for goods delivery in the city centre (in the Quadrilatero della Moda).

In Verona, the company uses pedal-assisted tricycles capable of carrying small parcels: the tricycles are refuelled by a UPS van which acts as a mobile ‘sorting centre’, with a load capacity of 300 kg and a volume of 1.5 cubic metres, and can travel up to 60 km on a single charge. In Hamburg, UPS has deployed cargo bikes as part of urban logistics initiatives aimed at reducing the need to use larger vehicles for deliveries. The company has over 110 hybrid-electric vehicles in Italia for parcel delivery. Across Italy, the UPS Access Point network comprises over 5,000 collection and delivery points; across Europe, there are over 40,000.