Sharing the Road Safely: Navigating the Surge of E-Mobility in Solid Waste Collection
As fuel costs drive unprecedented growth in electric bikes and micromobility, commercial waste fleets and cyclists must share the road safely. Preventing collisions requires intelligent route design, driver vigilance, and mutual respect on the street.
– 4 Min Read
Volatile gasoline prices and expanding bike infrastructure have transformed urban and suburban corridors. E-bikes cost roughly one cent per mile to charge—compared to 15 to 20 cents per mile in fuel alone for gas-powered cars. Consequently, more than 40 million e-bikes are sold each year globally, and the U.S. market has surpassed $2 billion.
While this transition delivers clear environmental benefits, it brings distinct operational challenges for the solid waste industry. A 50,000-pound collection vehicle operates with severely limited visibility, while silent e-bikes travel at speeds up to 28 mph.
On a recent episode of the Right on Time with RouteSmart podcast, host Matthew Kemeny sat down with industry safety leader David Biderman, President of Biderman Consulting, LLC, and Jessica Cearfoss, Business Development Executive for RouteSmart, to discuss the issue. Their takeaway: safety cannot become a debate over fault. It is a shared responsibility.
Beyond the Blame Game
Fleet managers frequently hear concerns about e-bike couriers running red lights or riding against traffic. Biderman stresses that professional operations must rise above assigning blame:
“You can’t expect every single road user to be following the law… Avoiding the collision is far more important than the fault issue. We have to acknowledge to drivers, ‘Yeah, you have a tough job.’ And part of that tough job is avoiding collisions with other people who may not be complying with the law.”
Commercial drivers hold Commercial Driver’s Licenses (CDLs) and defensive driving credentials. Meanwhile, CPSC data reveals that roughly 36% of micromobility injuries involve children 14 and younger. Professional heavy-vehicle operators must anticipate unpredictable behavior, continuously check mirrors, and eliminate cab distractions like cell phones, food, or tablets.
Pre-Engineering Safety Through Route Design
Mitigating risk cannot rest solely on a driver’s split-second reactions. Engineers must design routes to avoid hazards before the truck leaves the yard.
“RouteSmart’s perspective is trying to get ahead of safety concerns before you’re out on the road,” Cearfoss said. “That means intuitively designing routes to avoid areas where there’s naturally a higher volume of safety issues—accounting for turns, road width, bike lanes, and time windows.”
Key route planning interventions include:
- School Time Windows: Restricting trucks from school zones during peak commute windows (7:00–9:00 AM and 2:00–4:00 PM).
- Minimizing High-Risk Turns: Sequencing stops to avoid blind right turns across dedicated bike lanes.
- Accounting for Street Changes: Updating routing GIS layers to reflect reconfigured, narrowed lanes and new bike paths.
- Hands-Free Audio Routing: Using in-cab turn-by-turn guidance so drivers keep eyes on the road.
Safety is not about taking sides. It is about getting people home to their families. By pairing intelligent route optimization with defensive driving and rider awareness, waste fleets and communities can protect their streets together.
To learn more about how we prioritize safety in designing routes for waste crews, visit www.routesmart.com/waste-collection.
