PROJECT CHANGE
P e d a l a
Signed, Sealed, Delivered
BLANCHE RIVERA-FERNANDEZ receives a parcel from Pedala and discovers the city’s most eco-friendly and efficient courier service. You’ll never guess he’s an IT consulTanT aT accenture, but you’ll never doubt he’s a delivery boy. all geared up on a Monday, choy calunsod is one of the part-time messengers working for Pedala, a bike messenger service making the rounds of Metro Manila. Born to address the perennially rising cost of fuel and to cut down on pollution, Pedala is both a business and an advocacy of production stylist/designer candy reyes, an avid mountaineer and cyclist. The idea was inspired by the biker courier services in new York and london candy has become familiar with. Pedala has a roster of 15 bikers (four of whom are regulars) plus a dispatcher, who coordinates the delivery assignments from candy’s home in loyola grand villas, Quezon city. Pedala services Quezon city, Makati, Pasig, san Juan, Mandaluyong, Manila, the Fort in Taguig, Marikina, and Pasay.
Part-time bike messenger Choy Calunsod delivers a CD he picked up in Manila to an office in Ortigas. Photo by Michelle Ayuyao
“The essence of a good business is to have an advocacy that is in practice. The business informs and enriches the advocacy,” candy says. Pedala’s yellow cycling shirt-clad messengers are totally green. on the average, the riders cover 300 km of road daily, about the same distance from Manila to Baguio. This saves about three car tanks’ worth of fuel in a day. unlike some regular courier services, Pedala can assure same-day deliveries or even rush deliveries (the parcel can be at your doorstep within an hour or two). This is because bikes, unlike vans or cars, can easily maneuver through traffic and use Metro Manila’s side streets. Pedala’s biggest clients are the online retailers who want quick and cost-effective ways to send their merchandise to their customers. Flowers on valentines are a big thing, too; so are cDs, documents and things left at home (mostly wallets and mobile phones). The parcels are all insured. “I love cycling, and I thought, why not try this? at least with Pedala, my cycling has a purpose—I need to deliver something to someone,” says choy, one of candy’s friends and recruits. Plus, he gets to take home 60 percent of the fee. not big for a corporate yuppie, but not bad for the environment. To inquire about Pedala’s delivery schedules and fees, call (+63920) 698 777 or email pedalabikemessengers@gmail.com. Office hours are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. You can also find Pedala on Facebook.
IT’S A CYCLE
1870
Pedala’s bike messengers are gaining popularity for their same-day delivery service. Photo by Joseph Agcaoili 74 M A B U H A Y
SEPTEMBER 2011
The first time bike couriers are used by the Paris Stock Exchange
1890
Western Union starts using bike couriers in New York and other urban centers
1945
Carl Sparks founds Sparkies, a popular bike courier service after World War II. It eventually becomes CitySprint.